Wilt And Blush
by FaleantheGreat
Summary: Sherry has a normal if not boring life. Now coming back to her farm valley home after her mother's passing, life throws her a curve ball when she finds a man floating in the river on her property. Looks like life just got a lot more interesting! Read and Review recommended.
1. Wilt

Wilt

Sherry was a normal person, well as normal as you could get in these troubled times. Surviving was easy. Living truly was hard. The days seemed to fall around her, never proving to be anything but indifferent. Maybe not pointless in the small term, but in the long stream of time, just a speck. She had no special talents. She was simple, grew up that way, stayed that way. Sure, she could grow crops. She could take care of cows and she knew how to ride a horse.

It just never felt like she was making a difference.

Here she was, forced to move back into her old home, to the childhood she thought she left behind. Her mother left it to her. It's not like either of her sisters would take it. Her oldest sister Chardonnay worked high up in the SDC security forces. Though most of the 'classified' information keeps Sherry in the dark, she knew that she worked under Winter Shnee and General Ironwood. She hated the farm. She much preferred the structured, ridged life of the military. Her other sister Asti, ever the cheerful one wanted to make a big difference. She ended up becoming a hotshot huntress with a nact for search and rescue. Always the persistent one.

So here sherry was, back from a dead-end job because she was clumsy, living off the farm inheritance passed down from her mother. The farm ever fertile because of the long river that came down through the center of the mountains before emptying into the ocean. Being so far north you would think that the crops would have a hard time growing. The mountains wrapped around the valley, keeping most of the bad weather out and enriching the land in between.

She was walking through the field towards the stream when she spotted metal piece of…something sticking out the dirt next to the river.

" _Great, maybe a pipe broke, this place is so old"_ She grabbed the shiny part of the black metal. She pulled it out, revealing a sword. Though the handle was black the blade was crimson, the color of blood.

"This is a sword" she told no one. "Why is there a sword here? What, are you gonna tell me that my farmer mother was a secret ninja? Oh, maybe a huntress?"

 _Yea right like that could happen_ , _sounds like the start of a bad action thriller_.

She went back the farmhouse. It was typical for what you'd find of an old house. It was made of wood with one or two of the steps leading up to the front porch creaking. On the porch was a rocking chair, a favorite or her late mother, next to the porch swing that her sisters used to sit at. She remembered they would read about stories of life and love, hardships and princes and magic. Now it was just old, the rusty chains reflecting dreams and aspirations Sherry long since distanced herself from.

The inside was just as modest. Her mother loved simple things and a simple life. The wooden floor covered only with rugs around the dining room table and underneath the 'living room' area that had two chairs and a couch. Walking in she could remember reading when her mother would shout 'dinner time!' from behind the island counter separating the kitchen from the rest of the room. She would hear her sisters arguing over boys coming down the hallway from their room to taste the heavenly goodness of homemade cooking.

She took the sword and put it on the kitchen island, inspecting it. It had chips in it, but no rust. It was not broken, but it defiantly looked like it had been in a fight. "What's your story? Did you come down the river? Just for me?" She stared at the blade imagining a giant of a man with battle worn armour brandishing this sword. It started out white and golden, but as the brute fought through grimm and criminalit slowly turned red until it was the crimson color of those he slew.

 _And the man went up into the mountains to train with his fists. He fought grimm off bare handed. Finally the guilt of taking lives caught up with him. Even though the grimm needed to be destroyed, the people he killed had souls that reflected in his blade. In grief he threw it into the river. Soon he learned that he has to live with his guilt instead of throw it away, so he will come down the mountain, sensing the blade since he is its master. He will come up to the door, come inside and see her staring at the blade._

 _What do you want?_

 _I've come for my blade, but I've wanted you all along._

 _Then he'll grab me and…_ "AHHHH! NO! NONE OF THAT!"

Pulling out of her trance like state she smacked he face. Realizing that she had been drooling over her own fantasy she grabbed a napkin and wiped her face off. "Next is a cold shower". Once done she got into her shorts she always slept in and went to bed.

The next day wasn't any better. She dreamed of encounters with extravagant hunters that would come sweep her off her feet all night. She wasn't stupid, she knew it would never happen. It didn't stop the dreams. Ever since her sister Asti got her husband and then a family she had been pressuring Sherry into 'find the one', even recommending dating sites and blind dates. Heck, even Chardonnay said that she was perusing a relationship with one of her fellow squad members.

 _There is someone out there for you! Don't give up yet sis!_

 _But Asti, I'm not that old! I'm only 22! I have plenty of time. You weren't married yet when you were my age!_

 _No, but at least I had been on a date sister. How many have you been on again?_

 _I've been on plenty of dates! Plenty!_

 _Right sis, right. With whom? Did he have a name?_

 _Right, right….umm_

 _~I'm waiting~_

 _Carl! His name was Carl!_

 _*Hahaha* Carl!? I bet he was tall?_

 _Yes_

 _Broad shoulders?_

… _Yes_

 _And such the romantic~_

 _Stop making fun of me!_

 _*Hahahahaha*_

Note to self: Apologize for hanging up on her…and refusing her call back…and the glitter bomb I sent in retaliation.

Really, there was no one. Not a soul that she considered datable at least. Some guys had shown some interest because working on a farm had not been bad for her body. It kept her in shape and gave her a nice golden tan that city girls just could not pull off in tanning booths. But they were so obvious that they didn't care about her that she refused to be with them. Her mother always said that love came with time, but time requires patience. _Which I do not have_.  
_

She cooked eggs, loosing herself in thought she realized she had cooked way to many. She left them in the refrigerator, as a snack for later before heading out to do her daily farm duties. Once she got done she just started wandering around the property. Since her family was that only ones brave or stupid enough to farm here, she now had ownership of the whole valley. There used to be others, but that was back when the grimm were less active. Go figure that now that there were no people besides her, there weren't any grimm. Probably because there was not enough negative emotion.

"I wonder if I could attract grimm just with my thoughts". She was walking farther up the river, paying careful attention to see if anything else washed up. "Oh, if I attract a grimm I could take the sword and be like 'stay back' and then a man will come walking into the clearing seeing how awesome I am."

 _You fight well with my blade~. Truly you are the one for me~_

NOPE! Not again! I am not that lonely! I don't need someone, I am perfectly fine on my own!

Still the thought of her being with someone strong ensnared her, the thought had her cheeks crimson. Soon she had picked up a stick, reliving the fantasy of the sword with the trusty wooden staff.

"UHE"

"Ahh!" She heard a noise coming from the river and threw her trusty wooden blade at its source. It struck true, destroying the evil demon and breaking apart on his head. Wait…his head…. HIS. The man who looked on deaths door already had a newly formed lump on his head with his face in the mud.

"Oh my god I just killed someone…"

She went down the small bank and pulled the broken stick off his head. She grabbed his arms and pulled him out, hearing the occasional grunt or whimper. He never opened his eyes, but she could see he was in pain. Though he wore black, and was soaked from the river, she could tell there were two places where he had been stabbed. One was on his front close to where she assumed the heart would be, and the other was a little lower on his back. So, being alone and out in the valley she did the only thing she could. She dragged him back to the house! Heroically! Or something…

Halfway back it started raining because of course it would. Why not? Its not like she was trying to save someone's life or anything! She found out that water tends to make dead weight even heavier, so she had that going for her as well. Hooray!

She managed to fight off the shivers that went through her body as the rain got heavier. She managed to get him up the second step of the house when a combination of water dripping on her back and the dead man shaking his head while grunting startled her. She promptly dropped him, hearing a loud thud of his head hitting the porch muffled by thunder.

 _Whelp if he wasn't dead before he is now_ , her brain told her as she again grabbed him and pulled him into the house. Her ranch-hand training came in, and though she was rusty she managed to wrap his now bleeding head in bandage tape. She took off his drenched clothes, which would have been embarrassing if she wasn't so scared that he was going to die. She went about dressing his wounds which seemed to have reopened in the trip back. He was losing blood. A lot of blood. She knew she would need to call a doctor from Argus to see to him.

 _Watch, you'll get the doctor to come out and he'll be like 'well he would have lived but it seems he had a major concussion that did him in…_

Oh, that was not going to happen. She wanted excitement, yea. She did not want to be a murderer or spend the rest of her life in a prison cell.

She got a towel and dried him off before putting a pair of shorts on to hide his…modesty… before dragging him into the master bedroom. She put him in the bed and covered him with the blankets, making sure to put extra cushion around his head for…no reason what-so-ever. Just being courteous really. She then called the doctor. It was a miracle that she had a land line phone out here since the CCT service was always spotty in this area if you got any at all. The doctor said that it sounded serious, but that he couldn't get out to her until two days from now. Something about increase number of patients in Argus due to a grimm raid. Until then it was up to her to keep him alive. The doctor recommended that she keep him dry, make him drink, and change his bandages every so often.

It was getting late, but she stayed beside him. She had time to think. _You wanted adventure! Here you go!_

 _I wanted many things, one of them was not a dead man in my river_

 _He is a man. He came down from the mountain._

 _I wanted someone to sweep me off my feet, not someone I literally drug home._ The thought made her laugh a little on the inside. _I did literally drag him home. Oh if my sisters saw this I would have died to their questions before he would have blead out._ She could already hear he older sisters screaming 'this is not what we meant when we said you needed to be more assertive!'

She now noticed a few things about him that she missed in the panic and dragging. Mostly panic. He had a large scar, reminding her of the cattle brand scars the cows get across one of his eyes. It said SDC in big letters. He was a Faunus, with little horns poking out of his head, though the tip on one seemed to be broken. Maybe he was a mine worker that escaped and fell in the river? She didn't know of any mines out here, but she hadn't been here long. The last time she was out here was when she was 16. They could have put a mine here since then. Either way, she vowed she would save him if it was possible!

 _She looked up to the man staring_

 _Hey, who are you?_

 _I'm Sherry. Who are you?_

 _I'm a huntsman, don't worry baby, my aura will heal me. I need to repay you though, for taking care of me._

 _No, really. Stop._

 _I mean it, I will give you anything~. Do you want rubies? Pearls? Me?_

WHA? She woke up startled and slightly drooling to the man she had saved looking down at her with his one good eye. Its blue shining into her. Piercing into her very soul and digging out information.

"AHH!" Not thinking, still half asleep, and startled, she grabbed the closest thing she could, which happened to be the rest of the roll of adhesive bandage tape and hit him in the head with it. She instantly regretted it as she hit something like a shield. The man in question glowed red for a second before the light went out and her attack with a healing weapon sailed home, smacking him back down onto the pillows as he gave a loud whimper.

 _He would have lived if not for the concussion~_

"I am so sorry! I didn't mean to! You startled me!"

"It hurts", he said. "Please don't do it again."

"Okay I won't, but can you answer some questions for me?"

"I can try, but first who are you?"

"I'm Sherry. You're in my house. I found you unconscious in the river. My turn. Are you a huntsman? My sister is a huntress, and that looked like aura…when I hit you…"

"I guess you could say that. My aura will heal me in time. I guess I have to thank you for saving me. I'll have to repay to somehow"

 _Whoa, deja vu._

She was about to back up and run. Her face just from thinking of the dream was as red as the sword still on her kitchen island, but his next few words stopped her.

"Oh also I have this pain in my head and a question for you?"

"What, pain. Oh that's probably from how I found you. A branch had fallen on your head in the river! Multiple actually! Hehehehe…yea"

"That explains the pain, but my question?"

"What is it?"

"Who am I?"

Sherry in all her life had never felt more afraid.


	2. The Doctor is In

**A/N: Thank you guys for all the support in writing this. I have ideas so, but I don't share what I write usually. My computer broke so this was delayed...I also have some ideas for some one-shots and the like. I run them by one of my friends before I write them. Something about heathen-istic ideas and writing. Either way, Let's go!**

The Doctor is In

He got off the phone, sticking it back on the receiver before sighing and looking at the clock. It was still early but it felt so much later. It was only ten but he had been seeing patient after patient since the grimm had come to Argus a couple days ago. And the whining! These people were supposed to be soldiers! Specialists! Mighty warriors! But all they do is whine like babies.

He went to the bathroom to wash his hands and face, a common practice for him before he went in to see a new patient. In the mirror he saw an old man. The top of his head was bald with grey hair on the sides of his head. The man had large, thick glasses and a white mustache that made it had to see his mouth.  
"Holy crap I'm old". This wasn't the first time he had told himself that. After 45 years as a doctor he knew he was no spring chicken. He knew what he was talking about though. Sharp as a tack. "It might be about time to retire."

There was a rap at the door that caught his attention. "Dad, you in there?"

"You know darned well I'm in here, so why are you asking!?" he said to the door not with any malice or hate but with conviction. As if he were stating a fact.

"Cordovin is back. She wants to know the status of the...glory troops of Atlas?"

That brought a scowl to his face. He quickly whipped off his hands and grabbed his trust cane before shuffling out of the bathroom. On the other side of the door he saw his son, a tall broad shouldered man with hair as black as night. He was covered in his doctors coat holding what looked like several patient files that were blue and white, the Alas files."Lets get this over with"

Going from the hallway to the main room that had multiple beds set up with people on them. Most were shrouded by white curtains as they slept, but some were open and talking to the new...guests that went from bed to bed, their leader in front of them in all of her 'glorious Atleasian splendor'. She noticed his entrance and quickly found another bed to go to, another of his patients to disturb.

Scowling again he quickly hobbled over to where they were, trying to be quiet as to not to startle anyone else. "What are you doing!" he whisper-yelled, "leave my patients alone! They need sleep!"

She turned her head and looked at him as someone would look at a bug, "oh and look who the cat dragged in. Hello doctor Whiskey."

"One time! I say you can cure a toothache with whiskey ONE TIME!"

"Calm down doctor, oh, former doctor, sorry." She got a smirk as she saw the old man turn red. Practically steaming from the ears. Time for the last straw. She waved him off while turning towards his son, who had sorted out the Atlas files, securing some to posts set up outside of the curtains before walking over to join their little discussion. "Now be a dear and take your nap old man while I speak with the actual doctor"

"THIS IS MY HOSPITAL! I HAVE BEEN RUNNING IT SINCE MY FATHER PASSED IT ON TO ME! IT WILL STAY THAT WAY UNTIL I SAY OTHERWISE!"

The moment he screamed out he heard groans from all the sleeping patients as they were rudely stolen from their slumber. One even started screaming 'Griffons! Griffons everywhere!' before whimpering. Needless to say Cordovin was not impressed. "You just set back my troops all because of your selfish sense of pride. The glory of Atlas cannot be sullied and I need my troops back. Increase your healing by about thirty percent so I don't have to ask for more from Atlas."

"You know what needs healing? I'm gonna shove my boot so far up your-" he was cut off as his son picked him up and covered his mouth with his hand.

"Cordovin", his son said, "you know that your troops get the best care we can. We know we got the stragglers because your Atlas wards are full but you have to understand our predicament. We are not used to this many people."

"Such a charmer, but you make more sense than your father doctor-"

"Bronze, Dr. Bronze. I thank you Cordovin for your protection and your patience in this matter"

Cordovin looked over the large man and smiled. "You know that offer last year still stands. You have the stature of a Atleasian soldier, and in the medical field you are the best the locals have to offer. I can still pull some strings and get you put into my ward."

The old doctor still in his sons arms stopped squirming to glare daggers at the she-devil trying to put its claws into his son.

Cordovin notices of course, giving a full on smile. "Aww, he looks like an angry chihuahua". Looking back up at his son she continued, "I'm leaving now. I have spoken to some of my people here and am satisfied, and I have fulfilled my goal here as well. Do give the old man his rest now." She pointed at the ground, waiting for the large doctor to bend down and look before patting the old man's head, being able to reach it now before quickly leaving.

"Is she gone?" some random patient asked.

"She's gone," another responded.

"Good, I want some water!" he called back.

"Oh, me too, and some sweets!"

"Doc! Help us!"

The old man, now back to leaning on his cane looked between the beds and the whining patients, then to his son who was staring at him while the nurses went to pacify the soldiers. "Shut-up and sleep, or I'll give you something to whine about. You babies"

"I hate that woman, you know that!" he said pushing into his back office that was covered in Atlas legal papers, "And I am a real doctor! I'm no spring chicken, but I am a real doctor or my name isn't Doctor Sage P. Bronze!"

"I know father, but you let her get to you. Don't let her get to you and you may be surprised how easy she is to work with"

"The phone starts ringing and the old doctor passes the cordless phone to go over to the landline phone to answer it. "HA! Nothing surprises me anymore. I've heard it all." He picks up the phone and says hello

"DOCTOR!"

"Wha!" He flails pulling the phone away from his ear as he hears a jumble of screaming, crying, whining, and what could be words(?) coming over the line. His son quickly takes the phone and tries to calm down the person on the line before giving the line back to his father.

"I'm sorry doc" he hears a young woman voice that he easily recognizes as Sherry, "The man I picked up the other day! His aura is unlocked, but it doesn't seem to be helping him any! I-I-I just don't know what to do! What do I, whaaa!" He hears crashing, splashing and what sounded like a man yelling before the rush of feet. "I messed it up again!" Then the line went dead.

"The old man pulled the phone away and looks at it with a blank expression. His son looked at him and says "What is dad? Trouble?"

"The old man put the phone back on the hook before looking at his son and sighing. "We need to go out to the old Letitia house before Sherry kills someone"  
"Sherry? Is that Amaranda's youngest?"

"Yea, she died recently, leaving the farm to her since the other two had no interest in it. Now it seems like Sherry is in trouble." He went over to the closet, grabbed a new coat and the old doctor bag that looks somehow older than he did himself. "As their family doctor for the last thirty years, I can't just let her go through this alone." He grabbed his coat and hat. "I want you to come with me. It's been too long since you've been out of the office, you practically run the ward with the nurses."

"Dad, I am glad you want to help, but you know we can't both go. What about the Atlas soldiers? Not including the normal patients we get. If we both left than there wouldn't be an actual doctor to see people"

"Nancy, the head nurse can take care of the normal patients and the Atlas soldiers can just deal. Most of them just need rest and the ones that have aura need aura supplements. Those are already handled by the nurses. The farm isn't that far out anyway, just over the mountain to get into the valley"

"Dad, no. I am not leaving patients alone, even if they only need minimal treatment. It's my duty as a doctor to make sure they are better." he pulled his coat and gave a determined look, like a man about to sacrifice himself for love. He then looked down at his father, "Plus Cordovin would kill you if you left her 'Atleasian glory' to fend for themselves."

"Stupid woman, can't even tell a splinter from an actual medical emergency, yet she says I'm not a doctor. Show her I can, I will." Then a light shown in his eyes, a wild wicked grin grew on his face, "I got it, oh boy I got it! You can stay here today while I go. Tomorrow you can come down to the Letitia house and confirm my diagnosis, which will obviously be correct! That will show that woman that I know what I'm doing!

"There are so many holes in that plan...so many things that could go wrong."

"Ah, nonsense. As long as Sherry doesn't kill him before I get there, things will be fine."

"So, besides the obvious holes of 'how is this going to show Cordovin anything' and 'what if something goes wrong' or 'What if you can't diagnose it', should we really let this woman Sherry anywhere near this guy? She sounds like a disaster waiting to happen"

"His father looks at his watch and then back to his son. "She called yesterday about someone she found in the river. I told her to keep him rested and relaxed with plenty of food and water, if he can keep it down, until I look at him. She wouldn't give me the specifics, but based on the call today it seems bad… and he's still alive today so...all should be well...I think"

"His son looked unconvinced at the words. This was not going to go well. Clearly somewhere down the line someone had lost their mind, he just wasn't sure if it was his father or this 'Sherry' woman. "Me going tomorrow is just as bad as going today. Nothing solves leaving the patients alone"

"Don't worry son, I have contingency plans for this long ago!" The old man reached into his coat pocket and pulled out what looked like an card like someone would get for a birthday or graduation. Before his large son could look at it he placed it into a similar sized envelope. "Here, tomorrow before you leave, give this to Cordovin's guards at the gate. Tell them it is a legure from me of the utmost importance, but is top secret to only be read by Cordovin herself."

"What? This? Why would me telling them that fool them? And this is obviously some kind of card, not a legure. This will never work."

"It will work because they're idiots, just like it is a legure because they're idiots, and it's top secret because-"

"Let me guess. They're idiots?

"No, because their Atlesians, but you make a great point as well" He said while looking like he was actually contemplating the two answers. "Either way it will work, their protocol demands it..I swear they've never had one of their own thoughts in their entire life."

"You're hard on Atlas, you've always have been"

His father got a distant look, like he was remembering something he'd rather not have. "Its fine", he said with a hushed voice noticing his son's look of concern, "I just have a reason to be...in time you will too". He looked distraught. "Just make sure she gets it, I'll be going now". With that he left.

"He had never seen his father like that. The only time he ever even got close was when he talked about the wars. This letter, sorry 'legure' must be important. He held it up to the light, and right before he pulled it down, he swore he saw a heart on whatever was inside. Nah, not possible, his eyes were playing tricks on him.

"It took three hours to take his old fire dust 'medical truck', if you could call it that, to the farm. Now past midday it was starting to heat up just a little, something his old bones were grateful for. He could have probably made it in two, but his eyes were not what they used to be, and even with his glasses he had to squint to see road signs. Once off the beaten path it was even worse, having to remember what roads to go down that he hadn't traveled in months, ever since Amaranda died.

"Making it to the old house he pulled to a stop before shutting off the old truck and walking up to the door. Even with his old ears he heard cries of pain, followed by shouts of apology, followed by 'I'll fix this' followed by more shouts of pain. All together, Doc was glad his patient seemed to still be alive.

"He knocked on the door, and everything went quiet. There was a rush to the door heard inside before Sherry slammed open the door, tears in her eyes, her red hair going in all directions, and stains all over her clothes. "Doc! She looked ahead, seeing no one she looked down. Ehh you are...smaller than I remember….and...old"

"You try being tall and stout at my age and you'll pull something. Backs already killing me just from the drive." Hobbling on his cane he made his way inside, "So where is he? From the groans I expect the back room?

"Yes! You gotta help him Doc, I've tried but nothing I've done has helped!"

"Going into the hallway he heard groans and whimpers coming from the closed room on the left, the master bedroom. Opening the door, well, let's just say what laid behind that door was a sight almost out of a horror movie.

There 'laid' his patient, if in fact 'laid' was the right word. The only actual clothes he had on was shorts. The man was clearly in pain, with both his arms and legs covered in bandages being held up to makeshift cords hanging from the ceiling, until only his lower back touched the bed. He had duck tape around his head with medical tape underneath it poking out, as well as a cold, wet towel on his forehead that was low enough where you could only see half the man's eyes. Covering his neck was what looked like two old pillows taped together so they would stay in place. There was something shoved in his mouth that looked like medicine with the packaging still on it, keeping him from talking. He had burns down his entire front. It looked like he had two large wounds on his torso, one dangerously close to where his heart would be, with blood crusted on the bandages. It also seems that she tried acupuncture as he was covered in colored straight pins that jutted out from him in odd angles.

"Doc just took in the sight, sighed, pulled his glasses off his face to clean them, and put them back on. The torture device was still there, only this time the man had one of his eyes open, pleading for the doctor to help him...or end his misery, whichever came first.

"Sherry came in behind him shaking, crying, and scared. "Is he gonna be okay Doc?"

"For the second time today Doc had half a mind to smack a woman, even though he knew he wouldn't. "It's worse than I thought…"

"Oh no! I knew it! He's dying because I couldn't save him in time!" She started to stutter about 'not going to jail' as Doc stared at her, just as shocked.

"There is hope", Doc said.

"That stopped Sherry, as she felt renewed hope course through her. "There is! Great! You gotta help him, please!"

"I will see what I can do today, and I will be staying here overnight to make sure he is stable. Honestly even for me this might be too much, I'll need help-"

"Don't worry I can help-"

"NO! I mean, uhm, you've helped so much already by the look of him that he should be fine until tomorrow." The eyes of the man that looked like he had accepted his death also came back with a shine, though whether the water going down the mans face were tears or water from the over-soaked rag on his head remained to be seen. "I'll be staying in here with him. Anything you want to give him, will have to be given to me at the door, do you understand? This is purely for doctor-patient confidentiality and his health. Mostly his health. Do you understand?"

"I-I I do Doc, thank you." She left the room closing the door behind her. As it clicked you could hear her say "Yes! I did something right!" before running down the hall.

"Doc turned back around, "Don't worry, I'm here now. She won't touch you again." The rag seemed to let off more water, soaking the pillows around his neck. "Now, time to reverse these 'healthy practices' of hers".

"Doc got on the bed and was about to pull his leg out of the straps when he realized there were some pins on the bottom of his legs, and on his back. "She was quite thorough wasn't she". He pulled out one pin, eliciting a grunt and a whimper from the man. "Don't worry, she told me you had aura this morning, probably the only reason you're alive, not including her 'treatment'. But like I said, don't worry", he said about to grab another pin, "It only looks like we have ah-hundred more to go…"

The man in all he couldn't remember, had never felt so scared.

 **So there's that chapter. I should have another one of these up next week, hopefully alongside one of the one-shots. Until then, Thanks for reading!**


	3. Gotta Love Sis

**A/N: Well my schedule got blown to pieces. I try to keep myself paced, but I found writing multiple stories fries my brain. I start mixing ideas together, then things get weird. Either way this is the next chapter! Some complications occur, answers that should be simple are not, and Sherry has some unexpected guests!**

Gotta Love Sis

Sherry sat down in the chair next to the couch as Doc grumbled and continued to go over the medical notes he had taken since last night.

"So explain to me again how you found Mr. uh, for now lets call him Mr. Bull"

"He was in the mud half submerged in the river, so I took him out and brought him back here"

"hmm, I see. At that time he had no aura?"

"When I found him, he honestly looked dead. I thought he was until he groaned out in pain. I don't think he had any aura"

"That means he probably came down the river."

"Doc, I already figured that part-"

"oh, and how do you know?"

"I, uh, found him in the river"

Doc scowled a little, mulling over the notes he had before looking back at Sherry. "When did he loose his memory?"

"H-He was like that when he woke up the day I called you. I don't know if he knew who he was before then since he was unconscious."

"Yet you didn't tell me that on the phone?"

"I was a little..." Thinking back at what she remembered as 'The Soup Incident' that caused more problems then solutions, "...distracted and panicky"

"Good to note. That brings us to one of the two major topics I have" Curious, Sherry watched the doctor. He was obviously not feeling well after a night of hard work. Sherry knew how hard it was to take care of a patient. They needed so many things. While she may have gone overboard, she must have done something right as the doctor praised he for her help. She even had a dream that she might win an award. "What the hell were you thinking!?"

And the dream dies. "What? I helped! You said so yourself!"

"Ever heard of sarcasm dear? I spent most of the night trying to undo what you caused!"

"But his aura was gone, and he has no memories! He's clearly sick! So I helped"

"Chicken soup burns, multiple concussions, bruising, anemia due to blood loss, and multiple holes due to poor acupuncture. Need I go on?" He quoted off meticulously, emphasizing all of them to the point Sherry was just staring at the ground. She felt like she was being scolded by a teacher, or father if she ever had one. "What were you trying to treat?"

"Some of those were accidents. The acupuncture I looked up on the internet. I heard it could help release stress, unwinding the body. I thought that maybe it would help him remember something."

Doc set the notes on the table and rubbed his temples, giving off an 'I'm too old for this crap' vibe. "You are lucky. The only reason his aura hasn't come back was it was keeping him alive through your treatments. If this had gone on any longer, you may well have killed him"

Sherry was shocked. Her head shot up at that, staring at the doctor with a look of horror, wanting confirmation. Doc just nodded his head, staring back at her. Sherry in return put her head back down, this time tears freely flowing from her eyes."I am truly sorry. I was just trying to help. I never really was good at anything besides cooking. I I am sorry!"

Doc was old fashioned. He knew that people were crazy. He'd seen it all in his years, but the one thing he could not stand was to see a woman cry. It brought back the worst memories, the sexual victims, the mothers of lost children, the war. Things never changed. Someone was always sad, but for him what hit him hardest was the tears afterwards. They always came.

He got up, ignoring the cane that helped him get places, shuffled over to Sherry and gave her the biggest hug he could muster. He felt her crying into his chest, so he stayed there until she was done. "Sherry, I knew your mother. She would be so proud of you for helping this man. You just have to be careful, especially with your treatments. Leave the doctoring to me."

He felt her wrap her arms around him. "Thanks Doc. I, I feel better now."

"No problem, it's the least I can do. There's something else I need to tell you, about Mr. Bull." Sherry looked up again, having red eyes and puffy cheeks after the crying session. Pure innocent eyes.

"What is it?"

He sighed, "Nothing, forget about it. I'll take care of it".

They heard a crash outside, and a scream, more like a 'whah!' before the door crashed open, someone falling onto the floor with a groan.

A girl came in after, pointing a spear at the person on the floor. She was dressed in hardened leather shirt and pants, perfect for stealth and protection. Stepping in, you could see weapons strap across her front connecting to a holder on her back. Lowering her hood, she had shoulder length blond hair with a headband keeping it from her face. She was taller than Sherry, but not by much. Either way her eyes and body showed a strength that was formed through years of rigorous training. Sherry's face lit up instantly. "Big sister Asti!"

"Sis! I found this guy outside the door, just standing there like a creep watching you through the window. How many times do I have to tell you, remember to watch your surroundings!" She put the tip of her spear under the man's chin. "Now talk! Who are you, and what do you want with my sister!"

Doc grabbed his cane and walked over to the two with a neutral look on his face. He stopped and looked up at the clock, then back down at the man. "You're late." He then looked up at Asti, who had a confused look on her face. "Asti"

"Hello Doc, do you know who this is?"

"Asti, meet my son, also the second in charge of my clinic, Dr. Bronze"

Asti, realizing that she had made a mistake took her spear away from his throat. She heard a shuffle from the hallway before she saw a man shuffling down the hallway covered in bandages, hunched over using the wall as support.

"Sherry? What's going on? I heard a crash, louder than normal"

Asti then realized that he was only in short shorts, her sister's old pair. Asti looked over the man before looking at her sister, a merciless glare in her eyes. "Sister, explain. Now!"

Sherry looked terrified, only because the Asti she remembered was never this serious. "uhm". Yea, this is gonna take a while.

"-And that's what happened sis! There was really nothing going on!"

Asti was now sitting on the couch, listening to Sherry tell her account of the state of affairs they had found themselves in. Young Dr. Bronze had, by order of his father, taken Mr. Bull back to the bedroom, where the man was running his own diagnosis on him. Doc sat next to Asti, occasionally giving input into what he knew about the situation, as well as his son being here.

Asti gave Sherry the benefit of the doubt. Sherry never was one to lie. Heck, even when she did, she lied poorly. Seeing Dr. Bronze coming down the hallway, she still had doubts. "It still doesn't explain why he was being a creeper"

Hearing this, Dr. Bronze sat on the other chair on the right side of the couch, across from Sherry. "It looked like Sherry and my father were having an emotional moment. I heard crying, like something bad had happened. The last thing you want to do in that situation is to walk inside like nothing is happening. Especially since this is her house." He looked at Asti accusingly, "Some subtlety is required" He made sure the word 'subtlety' was stressed.

"I may have gone overboard, but no one messes with my sis. Okay? I will be asking later why she was crying, and if you have anything to do with it, you will find yourself back on the floor. This doesn't help my paranoia, especially with the assignments I've been on lately"

Sherry looked interested at the topic. Anything to get away from the drama of the man in the back room. "Sis, no one has been able to get a hold of you. You've been out of touch for months. Even your husband thinks you're dead"

"I shouldn't be telling you this, but I've been fighting the White Fang and their contacts as part of my job. They've been stepping up attacks since Beacon fell. Some of our best have died trying to stop them. So far we've minimized the damage, rescued civies. It's just hard sometimes."

Old Doc seemed to stiffen at the mention of the White Fang. Dr. Bronze noticed but chose not to comment on it. He knew his father, if it was important, he would tell him.

"Now it's even harder since the bandit clans in the south seem riled up, no telling what with them" Asti said.

The room went silent. Only the ticking of the old clock on the wall was heard throughout the house. Asti saw her sister look at the hallway, a clear look of concern on her face. Only then did Asti remember the strange man in his sister's shorts.

Asti got a wicked grin, "So sis, who was that man in your pants?"

Both doctors looked confused, then looked at both sisters, drawing there own conclusions. Sherry looked like she had turned into a tomato. Her face was bright red and she put her head down to cover her face.

"What?" the young doctor said.

Asti looked at the young doctor, then the old man. "You two, go away. Sis and I need to talk...privately about some girl issues"

The old man grabbed his cane, pulling himself up using it he started walking towards the main door, now bending at a slight angle, but still fitting in the doorway. He stopped and came back when he realized his son was still sitting in the chair, a confused look on his face. He grabbed his notes from the table and tapped his son with his cane. "Come on, we'll compare notes outside. Need to make sure we were thorough"

Doc looked at Asti, "If you need us, we'll be right outside". Asti nodded and turned back to Sherry, who was just starting to settle her nerves.

The two Doctors walked outside, closing the door behind them. You couldn't hear them, but you could see them talking to each other through the window, occasionally pointing at something on the pages they were holding.

"So", Asti said, "Who is he?"

"I don't know! I already told you the story. You know even _he_ doesn't know"

"Yet you let him in the house? What were you thinking! He could have been a murderer, a theif, or some kind of rapist!"

"He's not sis"

"You don't know that! He could be playing you for a fool!"

"Sis, I've only had a couple conversations with him, but in all of them he has been polite and kind. He's scared, what would you have me do? Kick him out?"

"No, just be careful! I know you like to help people, but you need to use some common sense. People just don't end up floating down the river half-dead. Something or someone did that to him, and as much as I would like to blame the grimm, we have no way to know for sure. You could be the next victim!"

"Sis, I'm sorry. You are right I was careless. Especially the first night, but I am fine. If I can help him, be of use for once in my life without screwing up, I want to take it."

Asti looked at Sherry. She didn't have her blush on anymore. Instead a look of pure determination set her small face. "You remind me so much of mom." She saw Sherry look down, caught off-guard. "How was her funeral?"

Sherry thought for a little bit, and when she spoke, she spoke softly. "It was great. Small, but everyone that was there truly knew mom. There was no half-baked people. Everyone that was there was there for her. Doc himself gave the eulogy. It was….special"

"I'm glad, mom always did prefer strong ties to people over just loose acquaintances" She looked around the house, reliving old memories. "Its only fitting that you own this place, what with I already having a home and big sis going off to Atlas."

"Big sis", Sherry said, staring at Asti.

"Haaaa! Enough of this! Lets get down to brass tax!" Asti pulled Sherry out of the chair onto the couch, getting extremely close. "So, you are using protection right?"

There was silence...

Sherry once again turned tomato as what Asti said processed, "Wha! Sis! No!"

"No? That's not good, you need proper-"

"NO! I mean it isn't happening! I haven't done that kind of thing!"

Asti had another wicked grin, and brought her hand up to cover it."Oh? You're almost twenty-three, I would have though you would by now. I know I had~"

"Sis! I don't need to know about your love life! Please leave mine alone!"

"Still dating whats-his-name...Carl?"Asti said this with a heavy dose of sarcasm, thick enough that Sherry swore the words coming out of Asti's mouth were visable.

"No, he was nice, but it didn't work out. He was too dedicated to his job, never had time for me. Like I was an afterthought" Sherry said stringing along excuses of the made up relationship, hoping her sis would not ask specifics.

Her sister got a glare in her eyes, "I might have to hunt him down and….have words with him"

"Really sis, its fine" _Please drop it_

"Sad, so if not 'Carl' then maybe someone else has caught your fancy?"

 _Oh thank the brothers!_ "Not yet, sis. Not yet"

"A shame. Anyway, I was just stopping by to make sure you were okay after the funeral and the 'taking over the house and farm' deal. I'm glad you seem settled, even if there is a half-dead guy in mom's old room. That means its time for me to leave again". She got off the couch and headed for the door. "Any last minute advice for me?"

Sherry looked at her sis, once again showing determination, but also sad at the short appearance, "Call your husband, let him know you're safe at least. He's been a wreak, which has not been easy on your daughter"

Asti looked sad, "You're right. It's not fair for me to do that. I just wanted to keep them out of danger, guess it comes with drawbacks". Asti got a wicked grin again, "Oh, and you should remember to wash your shorts after you get them back". Sherry got embarrassed for the third time. _And the straw broke the camels back_. "You may be lonely, but you shouldn't be _that_ lonely." She slipped out the door as she heard something hit it.

"ASTI!" Sherry Screamed, embarrassed.

 **Meanwhile**

The old man grabbed his cane, pulling himself up using it he started walking towards the main door, now bending at a slight angle, but still fitting in the doorway. He stopped and came back when he realized his son was still sitting in the chair, a confused look on his face. He grabbed his notes from the table and tapped his son with his cane. "Come on, we'll compare notes outside. Need to make sure we were thorough"

Doc looked at Asti, "If you need us, we'll be right outside". Asti nodded and turned back to Sherry, who was just starting to settle her nerves.

The two Doctors walked outside, closing the door behind them.

"What?" Dr. Bronze said looking at his father.

Doc shrugged his shoulders before walking away from the house a ways, motioning for his son to follow. "Women, they talk crazy, they talk weird. Never straightforward with them. In all my years I can say I have found out so much about how the human body works. Women though? I don't think they know what they think half the time."

The young doctor took his father's words in. True he never understood them, but he was young compared to his father. He thought over time it would get easier, but I guess not.

His father spoke up, "Did you send that letter I gave you?"

"Yes I did, convincing the guards to take it was why I was late. What was it anyway?"

"Oh nothing you need to concern yourself with right now, eehhehehe"

His father had that look in his eyes like all the rest of the world didn't matter. Dr. Bronze didn't know what that look meant. Oh how he wished he did, to at least know he wasn't going to be executed on sight when they went back. Looking back at the papers in his hands, he went back to what he knew. "So you said we would compare notes?"

"Yea I did. Here, take mine and read them. I will do the same to yours and we'll discuss any discrepancies"

"Okay"

The two exchanges notes, carefully reading over each others notes quietly, only stopping here or there for minor questions. In the end both came to the same conclusions.

"This is bad, isn't it?" The young doctor said. "If his aura is having this much trouble around those two wounds, he might never be the same again. That's discounting the amnesia." He looked at his father, hoping they had overlooked something.

"You know as well as I do that his concussions were minor, his amnesia temporary. He will recover them in time."

"We're not going to tell her then?"

"Tell who what" his father said, feigning innocence.

"You know exactly who and exactly what father. Sherry! She needs to know that those two wounds were caused by a blade. A blade that someone had aura pushed into. We may not be huntsman but I have studied enough aura manipulation to be able to sense others! He has foreign aura still reminiscent in those wounds, you know what that means."

"A huntsman's blade, or at least someone who can manipulate their aura into a blade. I know"

"Then why pretend like you don't! We should warn her, someone may be after him! He may be a criminal!"

"That's no concern of ours right now. I will look after him, for he is my patient. For now we need to figure out how to get a hold of an aura machine reader so we can make sure our diagnosis is correct!"

"You're ignoring safety measures that you've never had before. You know we need to warn her! Especially since we don't know who he is!" His father looked at him with an odd stare. It sent shivers through him, he knew what his father was saying. "You know who he is." It wasn't a question, but a statement.

"I do, I've treated him before. A….long time ago"

His father got that stare that he did when he remembered much of his past. He knew his father did not have a good past.

"How much of a threat is he?"

"In the end, once he knows who we are" His father looked up at his face with a saddened look, "we may all die"

It chilled him.

He was about to ask another question when he heard a loud thump followed by snickering and Sherry screaming 'ASTI!' He turned around and saw Asti heading there way. For a second he thought about telling her the trouble. His father grabbed arm. He looked down at his father, who shook his head no while looking at him.

"Sup, Doc, er, docs? I never got to thank you guys for helping Sherry through this. She's stronger than she looks, but she is still clumsy and easily fooled"

"No problem", the young doctor said. "We live to help people. As doctors it's what we do"

"I guess I owe you an apology. Sorry for thinking you were a creeper after my sister" She stuck out her hand for a handshake, which the young doctor took. "Bygones? Dr.-"

Shaking her hand,"Bronze, Dr. Carl Bronze"

He suddenly felt like he put his hand in a vice grip. His swore he could hear his hand imploding in on itself, all the bones cracking. He looked at the girl who's eyes now spoke of torture and pain. His father, who had not said a word looked up at him as if saying 'women' with a dejected tone

"Dr. Carl Bronze was it? I may need to 'speak' to you, preferably with no witnesses"

The doctor in question looked down to his father, who had seemed to have disappeared, using all the energy he had left to 'get out of dodge'. He looked back at the girl with pleading eyes. She in turn used her other hand to pull her collapsed spear off her back.

"Now if you would just step into my office", she said while pulling him towards the bushes and trees behind the house, "We can have a few….words"

He'd never felt so afraid

 **And that's a wrap. What was in that mysterious letter? How bad is Mr. Bull's injuries? Does Doc really know who he is? Lastly, will Dr. Bronze survive Asti's rage?**

 **Find out next time!**


	4. Memories

**A/N: Hello and welcome to the next chapter of 'Wilt and Blush'! This is either Thursday or Friday depending on if I like what I write in the next few days. I also hope people like the other story I was working on.**

 **Either way, lets begin**

-O-

Memories

Pain lanced through his arm as he fell behind a rock. It was going so well, but in the end it seemed for not. He looked over at the ragtag group of people that fell in behind the rock next to him, blasts and explosions still being heard.

"What are we going to do!?" one person said.

"We can't go on!" said another.

"Sir!" A large man with claws coming out of his fingers looked at him, "What are we going to do?"

"Why are you looking at me!" he replied, "I can't have all the answers!"

"You organized us. You made us believe we could be something more, so you're in charge" The man had steel in his eyes, undeterred by the blasts going off around them. "I will follow you to the end"

"But I'm only a teenager!"

"Did that stop you from doing what the rest of us wanted to do, but were too afraid to do? No, you've been fighting for us ever since you got here, and I believe you will be even once we get out"

He looked around him, at all the faces. Some were scared, others more pristine, but all were covered in dirt and grim. They all looked at him. There was no doubt in their eyes, no second thoughts or feint hearts, they all saw him as the leader. A survivor, an organizer, a savior. There was no way he could let them down.

"I see" he said smirking. "We may be idiots, but I guarantee by the end, we will be free!" That got a reply. Even though they were huddled below a rock with drones and personnel shooting at them, no one was silent. All threw their hands up in a loud roar. One that he was certain even those on the surface heard.

"What are we working with?"

"We still have a couple hundred men with us clearing out the lower tunnels. We own most of them now."

"What about exits?"

"There are only two now. The third was blocked off by Samson and his group when they tried to get out, accidentally cause the tunnel to collapse" The large man looked down, practically oozing pain and sadness. "There were no survivors"

"I'm sorry about your brother. I know he meant a lot to you"

It looked like he was about to say something, but then a droid came around the corner, shooting two people next to them before it was taken down. One man spat on the head of the droid, watching it corrode as his spit melted the metal and circuitry. "Another time perhaps"

"Agreed". Peering over the rock he could see other workers trying to hold their own against the droid backed guards in front of them. The droids seemed to be causing more problems than the guards, as they were weak, fattened up by the idea that something like a revolt could never happen. "We need to get out of these tunnels. If they decide that we're to much trouble than we're worth they'll just collapse them on top of us" He then looked back at the two men who were shot. "Are they alright?"

Another man who had a grimy coat on slithered up to them, which was in no way because of his reptilian traits. "I worked in lower medical, let me see" He pushed his fingers against one mans neck, then the other, then followed up by looking where they were shot before shaking his head. "One died instantly, the other is alive, but needs medical treatment straight away… I don't think he'll make it to the surface"

"Damn" he heard someone say, "so much for non-lethals"

Some of the men finally looked worried. It was different hearing about people dying trying to get out then to actually see it happen in front of you, knowing that it could have been you instead of them. That determination that was thriving just a second ago was now crushed under the weight that some of them, heck even most of them, would not make it out alive.

"We can't give up" he heard himself say, "Even if we just laid down right now, they would kill us anyway" Where were these words coming from? "I say if I have to die, I want to try. I will make a difference! We will get out!"

The people that had doubts now looked like they were back on board. Scared, yes. Frightened, actually terrified, but on board.

"You heard em boys!" The large man said, "Lets go make history!"

He swore that their cry was even bigger than before. The large group behind the rocks started their assault, running around and jumping over the rocks. There was a noticeable increase in fire and explosions as they came out, more from other connecting tunnels soon saw the advance and also came out, overwhelming the guards and droids with sheer number. Still when he tried to run out, the large man grabbed his arm, pulling him back. "Not yet sir. Let them go first, you must make it out!"

He understood what the man meant, but was not going to have it. "You chose me as a leader! A leader sticks with his men! To victory or defeat, whatever the outcome. Now let me go and stay here, or come with me. Either way I am going!"

The large man smirked. "Yes sir!" With that they ran into the fray.

-O-

Sherry looked up from the old farming tractor she had been tinkering with. She swore she heard something. Not hearing anything though she went back to the tractor. Her big sis Chardonnay was always the one to look after the equipment with mom, so she had no idea what she was doing. She was sure that if they could do it, she could. She just needed a little practice, and where better to get it than with hands on experience!

She noticed the yesterday that the old tractor was acting funny. After using it for some time it started sputtering before stopping altogether. She had yet to fix, or even find, the problem, but she was sure it had something to do with the engine. Dust engines were really never her thing. She knew the basics because, doesn't everybody, but those basics started and ended with 'it runs on fire dust'. Still she felt confident in her skills, though a growing number of parts in a pile she had from the engine that she had pulled out and had no idea where they belonged worried her.

Sherry jumped up a second time. Okay, she defiantly heard something. It was coming from her right, the direction of the house.

"AHH!"

Crap! It was the man...uh...Mr. Bull! She knew those screams anywhere. Mostly because of how many times she's made him scream. _Note to Brain: Don't take that out of context. Stupid Asti!….need to send another glitter bomb…._

She ran over to the house, only tripping in the mud once still left from the rain the other night. Still, in the couple of seconds it took to get over to the house, she was covered in mud, and his screaming had intensified _._ She got to the room, not caring about the mud that would get on the floor, that was for later. For now Mr. Bull needed her help.

In the room he was even louder. He was rolling around on the bed clutching his head while screaming. A few times Sherry swore she heard a name. She tried to get him to stop rolling around, but she was too small to hold him still. His powerful muscles backed by aura pushing his body. Sherry remembered two days ago, when the doctor was here, the old doctor had left some medicine. Not by choice mind you, but the old doctor knew that she was more than competent to help Mr. Bull alone. She couldn't let him down!

She grabbed a note the doctor left along with instructions for what to use when….She couldn't read it. "What is this!? I've seen more words in clouds!" Seriously, it looked like the doctor had just put a line on top of a line on the paper, only deviating from said line to make bumps. In other words, the instructions were useless.

Mr. Bull was still flailing, screaming higher and higher in volume and pitch. Sherry was scared. She panicked. The instructions were useless! She didn't know what to do! She was useless! She grabbed the box of medicines that was under the instructions, hoping it would have the answers she desired. There were a bunch of pills that seemed to be color coded, with big words she'd never seen before written on their packages. On the top was a syringe filled with some kind of liquid. It clearly stated 'FOR EMERGENCIES ONLY' on it.

Sherry looked at the screaming man who looked like he was clawing at his stomach, opening the two large wounds again. _And they were healing so well_. He was also kicking now, throwing the blankets that used to cover him off into the wall.

It looked like an emergency to her, so Sherry grabbed the syringe, almost poking herself with the tip in the process and jumped toward the man. She grabbed one of his arms and pulled trying to get hold long enough to deliver the medicine when he flipped over. His eyes were open, looking like they were vibrating as he screamed.

 _I'm frightened! NO!_ Sherry screamed as well when the arm she held came around, grabbing her arm and squeezing hard. Mr. Bull was still screaming. His other arm came around, looking like he was going to grab her with the other hand. "NO!" she screamed as she pressed down her right arm, the one he was grabbing.

Suddenly the hand coming toward her stopped and fell. So did the one grabbing her arm. She realized when she pressed her arm down, she pushed the syringe into his arm, pushing whatever it was into his system. His eyes began to close. He said three names: Tepson, Butch-ah like he was gasping for breath, and Blake. The last one seemed to take longer as his eyes shut, his body no longer flailing. All was still.

Sherry pulled back shaking, remembering what Asti said ' _You don't know him! He could be a murderer! A thief! A Rapist!'_ She pushed herself down against the wall next to the door. It unnerved her. Sherry had conversations with the man. He seemed nice and respectful. He didn't know who he was or why he was here but he always made sure to greet her with a smile and a 'hello, how are you?' before anything else. She hoped that he wasn't a danger.

She got up from the wall, still shaking. It must just be one of his symptoms. _Please be one of his symptoms_. Either way she had to call Doc. Though his wounds were looking better than they were originally, she wasn't sure what his flailing could have done to them.

Sherry got to the end of the hallway before it hit her, and she laid at the end of the hall, shaking and crying. It was scary, she didn't know what just happened. She had never had someone look like that, attack her like that. She knew it was over, but her body just wouldn't stop shaking. Her eyes wouldn't stop letting out tears.

After a while she got the strength to stand again. Sherry was glad someone else wasn't here, but she also wished someone was. She knew she would make for a pathetic sight. She could feel her eyes were red and puffy, face probably red and tear-streaked. That mixed with the rest of her, with mud covering her overalls she had on from working on the tractor. She grabbed the phone, and called Doc's number.

-O-

It was a good day. With the excitement of the grimm passed Argus had got back up and running pretty fast. It was sunny, with not a cloud in the sky, which was odd considering all the rain from yesterday. Due to the grimm and storm Terra Cotta had been out, which had left her alone at first, until she got the most brilliant idea.

Adrian already had his daycare, usually so that Saffron could get some peace or go shopping, but now it was different. She got a job!

Saffron walked into the old clinic. The front door lead into a guest area, where people could sit and wait to be called in by someone behind the counter. She noticed there was no one behind the counter, so she moved to the next door on the left, hoping to find someone. That door lead into a long hall with gurneys and technical equipment next to them. Some had people in them that were moaning or asking for water. Nurses ran around in haste, tending to those crying patients, looking flustered.

At the end she spotted a ticker older woman than all the rest in a nursing gown. Unlike the patients the other nurses went to, the ones she went to shut up immediately, only starting up again when a different nurse passed by.

"Uh, excuse me?" The large nurse noticed her and went over to her.

"Vat do you vaunt?"

"I'm the new hire?" Saffron said with uncertainty, "I was told today to come in?"

The older lady looked her over. Saffron visibly shrunk under her gaze. She swore this lady could kill a grimm just by staring at it. Her pressure in her stare was just…. Intense.

"I kcnow wcho you are, jyes. Chnow I cham 'ead nurse, Nancy. Ve are busy today. Ve vill talk later about actual job. For now, man ze counter in front" With that the large nurse went to another patient. She must have scared him because he cried out in fright when she came close.

That was her cue to get out. Saffron went back to the reception desk in the other room, noticing that as soon as the door shut, you couldn't hear anything from the patient hallway. _Probably for the best_. There she sat next to a scroll and a calendar that had 'Appointments' listed at the top. Every so often someone would call to set one up, but there wasn't really anything else to do.

She thought of her baby brother. _Wonder if he made it to Atlas_. She was glad to see that he was okay. When she heard of Beacon falling, she feared the worst. _And of course he wouldn't call! I mean who would use a scroll for that!_

Suddenly it rang. "Hello, this is Argus Local Clinic, how may I help you?"

A sniff and a small whine later she heard a woman's voice, "Where is Doc? I (another sniff) need him to come down"

"I can schedule you an appointment if that's what you need?"

"No, (sniff) I-I-I need him to come down to the house. Its an emergency!"

"Calm down, I'll ask the doctor okay?"

"Tell him its Sherry (sniff), I need help (sniff)"

The line went dead. First day at work and already an emergency? The girl did sound bad, maybe it was an emergency. Saffron got up, abandoning her post at the desk, once again pushing into the patient hallway to find the head nurse she talked to before. She finally did at the end of one of the rows, putting new bandages on a young man that looked like he had seen the wrong end of a battle. He had some cuts and bruises chris-crossing his body, most seeming to be on his face and….lower area.

"Nurse Nancy?"

"Ched nurse to jyou"

"Right, right. Head nurse Nancy. I just got off a call with someone claiming they had an emergency and needed to see one of the doctors?"

Nancy shook her head, "Not possible. Ve have two docters, neither can see them"

"But she said it was an emergency! One of them has to help!" Saffron remembered the names on the plaques outside in the reception area. Pulling one, she tried to talk some sense into the head nurse. "Why can't Doctor Bronze go?"

The head nurse looked down at the patient and pointed, "Zis is Docter Bronze"

 _Oh, that's bad_. She looked over at the man. There was no way he was going to go. He looked bad, and he was passed out to boot. "Okay what about...uh...I think it said Doctor Whiskey?" _Though it did look like that plaque was tampered with…_

"Cheven more not possible"

"And why is that?" Seriously, what could a doctor be doing that is so important. _Especially_ if the only other doctor was not able to work? _What kind of clinic did I get myself into!_

"Che is in jail" she said nonchalantly.

Saffron had never felt so afraid.

-O-

 **A/N: It was hard writing this chapter, but once it came, I couldn't stop writing until it was finished. I know I didn't actually say what was in the letter, that's going to probably be in the next update. Also next time there will probably be a 'buzz' of commotion, if you know what I'm saying.**

 **I'm looking forward to writing the next few chapters. They will be interesting.**

 **Until then, read, review, and comment!**


	5. The Atlesian March

**A/N: Hello and welcome to the next chapter of Wilt and Blush. Its been a long time since I worked with this story and am eager to get back to it. Dr. Whiskey is my favorite OC, hands down. Lets see what he's gotten himself into.**

 **This chapter may be longer than normal, just because I want to fit in a lot of content.**

 **New faces, old faces, and a ton of Atlesians. Lets go!**

-0-

The Atlesian March

Everything was behind schedule, but it was moving along. It was so hard to find good help these days but Cordovin made due with what she had. The soldiers she had were...inadequate, she knew this. But one thing you did not do was insult anyone under her command. There was always someone willing to step out of line, someone willing to test her will, but she had been scheduled at this post for too long for someone to take everything from her.

When those kids came, questioning Atlas, questioning her will, she was bound to put them in their place. Give her time and she would have, but Cordovin was tricked into thinking they were just children. No, they were anything but that.

They were strong. Powerful. They may have needed lessons in strategy, but they had teamwork down. Using this power they were able to best her in battle. Not win! She gave them mercy, of course. She blames her soft spot for the younger, more useless, generation.

Either way it put her in a precarious situation. She had submitted a report on the battle, her troops, and the mech damage. She had made her people sound strong. If her report was read it would make this base look like a base that fought tooth and nail in the defense of Argos facing overwhelming odds with understaffed members, and prototype weaponry.

The response to the report should be coming today. Atlas military was never on time with normal messages. When it came to official documents, they were prompt and blunt. Often having language one would associate with an iceberg, depending on the state of the mail carrier, ice included.

A young man slammed into the private office. "Sir!" He quickly stopped, saluting.

Cordovan quickly followed protocol, but had no emotion in it. This was not the time for her to care.

"Sir! Two ledgers came in for you today! Both are marked for your eyes only!"

"Two?" She was not expecting any other top importance today. Usually they would inform her beforehand. Maybe it was an emergency?

"Yes sir! One is from General Ironwood himself and is quite large! The other is small and from a Doctor Bronze!"

She grabbed the two pieces from the runner. You could tell the differences between the two. One was large white folder with the Atlas seal on it, followed by the seal of Atlas academy, meaning that it could have only come from the headmaster general himself. The other looked like a small card. Less a ledger and more something someone would see on their birthday, not like she ever got one.

Cordovin put them both on her desk. "Is that all runner?"

"Yes sir! On your orders I would pick up the station reports and return to Atlas!"

"You are dismissed" Cordovin shouted. The man quickly saluted again and ran out the door, shutting it behind him. An audible crash was heard down the hallway, muffled yells followed. So hard to get good help. I thought the damage to the long distance network would be the end of this base. If nothing else I can say we Atlesians are hardy. We don't cry from just a little pain…

First she opened the official document from General Ironwood. Now there was a man. Every man in Atlas should aspire to be like him. Strong, unyielding, he gets what he wants and doesn't believe in backing down or compromise.

It was paperwork on the mech that she was expecting. It also had a certificate of congratulation inside. Apparently she was getting promoted, though her post would remain the same. For her 'Excellence under extreme duress' and going 'above the call of duty'. From this day forward she was a Lead Specialist. It came with an impressive pay raise, and the ability to lead her own team if the opportunity presented itself. She was finally on the same rank as General Ironwood's 'golden child' Winter Schnee.

There was a military gala celebration where she would be awarded her rank in one week. They require her to head back to Atlas to attend the event. While Cordovin had not been in Atlas in so long, she was sure it was just as beautiful as she remembered it being. If she didn't attend it would be a slap against Atlas. No way was she, the pride of Atlas, going to do anything that looks like she is ungrateful to them.

She wondered how her soldiers were doing in the hands of that doctor. She loved to mess with him. She'd known the doctor since she took this post back in her youth. For as long as it has been he has always hated her. She didn't know why, but the frustrated look on his face always brought a smirk to her face.

Cordovin looked down at the letter, oh sorry, ledger, that had been given to her. The runner said it was for her eyes only from Doctor Bronze. Cordovin sat back on her chair as she opened the parcel. It was probably his acceptance for the post as her medical officer. Finally she pulled the last string from that old man. If his own son left him, he would finally have to admit defeat. That would be one more person checked off her list and one more great soldier added to her ranks.

I mean besides his medical prowess, he held himself up. Doctor Bronze was young, strong, tall and handsome. She may be old, but she was still a woman. He would make a strong addition to Atlas society.

Cordovin looked down at the now open letter. The front had a heart on it with the words "A little gift for you' written on it. Oh my, Doctor Bronze! She could understand why he was attracted to Atlas, but this was for her eyes only….I mean she was too old. Though maybe he was attracted to power? Don't get too excited.

She opened it slowly. Inside there was an old report. It looked like a cut out of an old newspaper along with two small pictures. One of them was folded, but the other was of a young woman with dark hair, smiling toward her. There were little droplet marks on the picture and creases on the sides of it. The sides worn like it had been held for a very long time.

The newspaper was reporting on a local village that was destroyed by grimm after an attack. The village didn't mean anything to Cordovan, but the date stamped on the paper she knew. It was the day she took over her post. The post she has kept to this day. It sent shivers down her spine. She had suppressed this information. Not thought about this in years. She needed to make sure that her actions that day never came to light. It wasn't that she was ashamed of what happened, but that in the politically fueled time today it could mean the end of her career.

Cordovin opened the picture and immediately scowled. "Guards!" She heard two people running down the hall at her call. They slammed the door, their rifles up, looking for intruders.

"Sir, we heard your call! What is it?" one of them said when they realized Cordovin was alone.

"Give orders to anyone on patrol! If you see Doctor Whiskey, arrest him immediately, and bring him here!"

"The local doctor? Why si-"

Cordovin stared down the man, a scowl still on her face. Fury in her voice. "Do I need to give you a reason to follow orders from your superiors!? Do it or you'll be the one in chains! Understand!?"

"Yes sir!" With that the two men ran out, not wanting to face the wrath of the small superior.

Cordovan sat back down, still furious. She ripped up the newspaper, but kept the two pictures. The one of the girl because she knew that she must be connected with this. The other because of what it had written on it.

She put it in her drawer, locking it. The picture was of a small village. The same one from the newspaper. The only difference was the villagers and militiamen that were bandaged and wounded on the ground in makeshift shelters.

On the top of the picture, in big letters, it said 'I KNOW WHAT YOU DID'. At the bottom of the picture in smaller letters it says 'And soon, they will too'.

Cordovin strode out of her office, heading quickly but still regally to the head engineer's office. She reached the open door to the small office to see a small man in large glasses mumbling over paperwork.

"-animals I swear, they don't know a relay tower from a tree….might get better results with the tree"

Cordovin made herself known with a hehem that sent the small man falling back

"Cordovin, Sir...er Mame!" He said saluting before hitting the shelf behind him with his arm, sending the paperwork on it flying in all directions. "I am happy to see you!"

"I need the relay tower fixed to send a message to the General. Fix it by tomorrow" Honestly this should have been done long ago. Its only that he was the best Corodvin could get that he stayed here, as clumsy as he was.

"Mame I currently don't-"

"It's sir! I am a higher rank than you, and you will respect Atlas while in my company! Is. That. Clear."

"Yes mame, I mean sir. SIR!"

"Good, now get someone on it. I want it fixed, and I wanted it fixed yesterday!" The man cowered under her gaze, shaking a bit as he spoke.

"Sir, uh… I don't have any personnel that I can put on that. We are overworked since the CCT has been strained. Even before that we were underfunded and overworked"

As he spoke he got quieter, seeing anger build in Cordovin's face. "Are you accusing Atlas of being unfair to its own military?"

"Um, no I-"

"Then you are accusing Atlas, the most efficient military in the world, of prioritizing inefficiency?!"

"No mame! Or Sir! NO-"

"You WILL have someone look at it. You WILL have it fixed by tomorrow. And you will NEVER insult Atlas in my prescence again! Am I understood!?"

He bowed his head, not willing to look into her eyes "Yes sir…."

"Good" Cordovin spun on her feet, heading out of the small office, while the small man rearranged himself back in his chair. She stopped when she went out the door. "Oh and don't make me come back here again, or you'll have a new post, as a private" The man started shaking. He knew he was too old. If he lost this job where he did mostly paperwork, he would loose everything. The man started shuffeling around, yelling at someone to contact Terra Cotta. Cordovin didn't care, its his problem now.

"So hard to find good help these days"

-0-

The day started normally for Blake. After arriving in Atlas and being detained by the military for their impromptu flight out of Argus, they had been given their room or 'quarters' as the guard had called it. They were supposed to stay in the building while the Altlesian council approved the identification cards used in Atlas for foreign visitors. They had been there for a very long time.

Blake didn't mind it at first. She hid away on the bunk in the right hand corner of the room. If she closed her eyes she could even imagine that she was back in Beacon. The problem came when there was nothing left to do, and her pass still hadn't been approved.

This was Atlas, so it made sense that she was still waiting for her ID card while everyone else had theirs. Much to Yang's anger

"It's not fair!" Yang yelled, punching the wall next to the door, "Why is it that Blake doesn't have her card yet!"

"I'm sure its just taking a while because of how we came" Ruby suggested

Weiss looked down, folding her arms over her chest. "I think we all know why Blake doesn't have her card yet"

Yang turned on Weiss in a heartbeat "I thought you were different! How could you say that!"

Weiss looked like she had been shot before getting angry herself. "I am telling the truth! Whether you like it or not we both know that they aren't going to give her one! She's a faunus!"

"How DAR-"

"AND. There is nothing wrong with that. I don't like that they are judging her when they don't know her. They are responsible for the security of Atlas, and I respect that, but if they aren't giving her her ID simply because of stereotypical trash, they need to be changed or removed."

Everyone went silent. Yang still looked angry, but also sad. Ruby was trying to keep her sister from doing something she would later regret. The entire time Blake just sat in the back with her head down. Blake knew something would happen. She knew that she would not be accepted here, where people have been raised to hate faunus and thrive on stereotypes. She hoped differently, but she knew better.

Blake lifted her head. "Weiss" Everyone stopped to look at Blake. "Its okay. I knew this would be tough. They don't like my kind here. Thank you for sticking up for me, but its fine" She looked at Yang, "I'll be relying on you until I get my own card. Do you mind?"

That calmed down, and made her blush a little before she smiled "Of course kit-kat. You know I'll always be there for you"

"Awe, so adorable" a sarcastic Qrow says pushing open the door and ruining the moment. "Now I don't know about you, but I really want to get into town. Get a drink and this place isn't exactly stocked with food"

Ruby didn't like that at all. "I though you said you weren't going to drink anymore"

"I'm weaning myself off, but I just started. Trust me kid, you don't wanna see what happens if someone just goes cold turkey. Huntsman especially. Its the one time people wish huntsman didn't have aura"

Blake could tell that Ruby didn't like that, but understood why. Blake had seen it before, back in the fang. Sometimes they would just die, other times the people went on a rampage, doing anything and everything they could to get a drink. Some of the more zealots of the group would get themselves hooked just to put themselves behind enemy lines when they went off. It was always bloody.

Ruby and Weiss walked out, but Yang just stood there. "You coming firecracker?"

She looked at Blake, then back to Qrow "Nah, I'm gonna stay with Blakey. She'll need some company, and I still don't think its fair that shes the only one that doesn't have her ID"

"Heh, whatever you say firecracker" Qrow turned to look at Blake "Just keep it PG 'til you get your own place okay?"

Yang and Blake both blushed at that before Yang threatened him with death by fist. Either way the awkward tension remained when Qrow closed the door and walked off laughing.

"That old man, doesn't know what he's talking about. Right Blake?"

"….sure…." Blake was trying to suppress her blush while looking anywhere but at Yang. That response didn't seem to help Yang as she seemed to get flustered with just the few quick glances Blake gave

"You know" Yang said smirking "Its really hard to keep a straight face when every time you look at me your ears stand straight up"

Blake, who had just pushed her blush down, failed to hide it as the floodgates opened to her cheeks. "betrayed by my own ears". Blake smiled as Yang laughed.

You know, maybe this wasn't so bad after all.

-0-

Time passed easy with Yang. Blake soon found herself nodding off on the bed. Darkness overtook her.

" _It's how it has to be Blake! Humans will never trust us!"_

" _Why have you betrayed me, my love?"_

" _I'm coming for you Blake, not even death can separate us"_

" _Blake….Blake….Blake!_ Blake!" Blake grabbed Adam and threw him down onto the pillow, pushing the small knife she always carried into his throat.

"Adam!" She pushed down harder. Her intent clear. She's killed him once, she felt no remorse in doing so again.

"No, Blake. Its me Yang!"

Blake blinked a few times, bringing her back to her full senses. She dropped the knife and jumped back, falling off the bed in the process. She curled up into a ball on the floor, crying. "I'm sorry Yang. I thought. I thought. I was going to. I'm sorry"

Yang crouched down beside Blake. Blake figured she would laugh it off or chastise her for being so jumpy. She did not expect her to hug her tightly while she continued to cry.

After a while the door to the other room opened showing a sleepy Ruby and Weiss using their scrolls to see. "Is everything okay, we heard some noises" On hearing crying they went to move over, but before they could, Yang looked up at them and shushed them. Blake, while crying, had fallen back asleep while holding onto her.

Yang picked her up, put her back in her bed and slowly detangled herself from Blake. When she got Blake to let go, Blake started shaking and clenching her face.

"What's going on?" Ruby whispered.

"I heard Blake shuffling around on her bed and occasionally gasping. I thought maybe she was in pain so I went to wake her up" She put her hand up to her neck where she felt the small knife press into her throat. If not for her aura, she would have died. "Blake was just having a bad dream"

"Why was she crying?" Weiss interjected

"It was a really bad dream. Don't worry, mamma Yangs got it sorted out, you can go back to bed. Sorry for waking you"

"If you say so" Weiss still half asleep turned back to her room

"Weiss, we have to help her" Ruby said

"Yang said she has it Ruby"

"But"

"Ruby. Bed. Now. Let Yang deal with it" With that Weiss went into the other room and crawled into her bunk.

Ruby looked back at Yang, still concerned. "Don't worry Rubes, I've got this. Go back to bed"

Ruby still looked skeptical, but saw her pleading would get her nowhere, especially since she was still only half awake herself. "Fine, but if you need help?"

"You'll be the first to know" Yang smiled

"Good, and goodnight" With that Ruby went back to her bunk, shutting the door between the two rooms behind her.

Yang looked back at Blake, who was now tossing and turning again. Instead of crawling into her own bunk, she slide next to Blake, grabbing her. Blake recoiled from the embrace, still asleep. "Shhh, I got you" Yang whispered into Blake's hair. "No one will hurt you while I'm here". Blake stopped trying to get out, and after a while pushed into Yang, using her bust as a pillow.

Yang felt her eyes drooping. "While I'm here, you'll never be alone" at the last word, her eyes closed, drifting off to sleep. Right before, she swore Blake smiled and purred

-0-

More days had passed with nothing changing. Blake still had no ID. With every passing hour Yang seemed to get angrier and angrier. Qrow tried talking to General Ironwood. He said the general had two seats on the council, giving him considerable power, but he only had two of the Atlesian council of six.

Still nothing happened. Yang went from angry, to frustrated, to murdery. You never wanted to go there. That brought her to where she was today. She was following the general to the council meeting. It was easy. She overheard from Qrow talking to Ozpin that the Atlesian council met every Friday. She was never the sneaky one, but she tired her best.

"I know your there you know"

He can't be talking about her. Its probably a test.

"Seriously Yang, I hear enough about you from your uncle to know you"

Yang looked over to realize the grizzled general was looking directly at her. "Was I really that bad?"

"I really hope your not the stealthy one on your team" Ironwood said smiling "I figured the dark one was"

"Her names Blake and that's why I'm here" Yang said "She still hasn't gotten her ID, which means she's restricted to the military building. I want that changed"

"She's really important to you isn't she?"

"She's my partner. I trust her with my life"

"No matter what I say you'll come to the meeting, won't you" He turned around and kept walking.

"You better believe it" She followed him towards an ornate house in the richer part of the city. They went into a large building that held your attention, even with the surrounding mansions.

"-and I'm telling you we don't need the funds from the dust embargo to go towards the construction budget! We need it more with the agricultural district, the embargo has left us rationing fire dust! If you haven't recognized, we live on ice above ice! We need the funds!"

"Councilman Williams I am an understanding woman, but you can't fool me. You have stockpiled enough for years of efficient produce! You just want the extra dust to show off at the next gala!"

"Like You're one to talk! The only fame you got is when the Schnee attacked you at the last one!"

Ironwood looked at the two from the doorway before looking back at Yang. "Listen, I will go in and try to get them to agree, but I've never fared well in politics. I'm more huntsman than politician. Stay here for now"

Yang wanted to protest, but could see the steel in his eyes "Fine, but I will be listening"

General Ironwood took a deep breath, opened the door, and strode inside. The two council members kept bickering between eachother. Both stopped when General Ironwood sat down. He motioned to both of them, giving greetings. Soon two holoscreens poped up from other seats revealing men that looked older than anyone Yang had ever seen. The youngest of the two already looked like he was on his deathbed.

"Councilman Brass, Councilman Chon, hope you have been doing well" Ironwood stated

"As well as we can be with your dust embargo" the older one (Chon) said with a raspy voice "It has been increasingly difficult to keep profit. We can only cut miners wages so much before the unions get antsy"

"Lets not forget the increased White Fang attacks because of it. Filthy animals!" Councilman Brass chimed in with a deeper voice

"I assure you that it is necessary to secure the security of Atlas, but that is not why I am here today"

"Don't tell me its still about that faunus trash that came in on your stolen airship?" Yang felt her grip tighten. How dare they talk about Blake like that! They didn't know her, or her team!

"Seriously we decided to humor you with the IDs for the others because they at least were human!" The councilman from the agricultural sect said, "Its enough that you let them into your school, now you want one from outside that has shown violent tendencies and harm to Atlas to roam free?"

"Listen, mind your tongue Councilman Sprout! They are people, the same as you and I and they make excellent huntsman and huntresses" That calmed down Yang a little, to know that the general was on her side kept her from running into the room and doing what she does best.

Councilman sprout sneered "I think I speak for everyone here when I say that filthy waste of life will never be accepted in this city! She deserves to be in the mines with others of her kind!"

Yang couldn't take it any more. She blasted open the door with Ember Celica, making it fly off its hinges. "YOU are the worthless filth I see!"

"Who?-" Thats all he got out before Yang's fist dislocated his jaw. She got a jab into the man's ribs before Ironwood grabbed her and pulled her down onto the table. The councilwoman was crying out for guards.

"What are you doing!? You just attacked a councilman!" He furiously whispered while struggling to hold her down

"He deserved it!" she said flaring her semblance, "Did you hear how they were talking!?" Yang turned her head to look towards the two holograms. Both men on them looked at her as if she were a bug in need of squashing. "Faunus deserve equality! Blake is my partner and I won't stand by while you insult her!"

Yang looked over at the councilman she hit, who was still on the ground, not moving. She tried to pull up again. Ironwood held fast. The fire left on the door caught on one of the rugs in the room, quickly spreading and burning everything it touched

"I'm sorry Yang"

"What are you-" She felt a stinging pain, and everything went black.

-0-

 **A/N: Hello, been a while. Apparently all it takes to distract me is GoT and Avengers. The next chapter of this should be up relatively shortly (Couple of days max) since this was actually only half of what was supposed to be in this chapter. I hope I don't get distracted again…**

 **Expect another chapter of The Renora Tragedy to be out soon as well (Should be Sunday-ish)**

 **Until next time, Read and Review!**


	6. Results of Our Actions

**A/N: Hello and welcome back to Wilt and Blush! This will fill in some more information and try to answer some questions (While also leaving more!). I hope you liked Yang and Blakes interactions last chapter. This chapter we get to see the consequences of Yang's actions, we get back to the doctor we all know and love. Also some more backstory!**

 **Yay!**

 **SmOkeyPanda brought up the concern about OOC for Yang. I can understand why you could see it that way. I just know that if anyone portrayed my friends and loved ones as 'trash' I don't know many people who wouldn't fly off the handle. Either way, I can understand the concern.**

-0-

Results of Our Actions

Two guards struggled with the small man, pulling him towards one of the cells Atlas kept in the lower floors of their Argus base. He had been gagged and cuffed but that didn't stop the small man from being a complete and utter pain. For his small stature he put up quite a fight, holding nothing back towards the large Atlesian soldiers.

"Mah mmfh! MMMffhwh FMM!"

"Look old man, get in there!" one of the guards said picking him up by his cuffs and throwing him against the cell wall. The old man hit the wall with a thud, but in a rare moment of youth jumped at the guard from in the cell. His defiance was met by a kick from the guard and the slamming and locking of the cell door. The old man decided this time to stay down.

A long period of time passed before he heard the opening of the large door leading to the cells. Instantly the two guards that were on watch in front of his cell stood up straight. They had more determination in their eyes. They saluted. A single smaller figure stood in front of them, an air around her as she completed the sign of military superiority.

"How is he?" she asked

"Sir, he was uncooperative!" One guard said

"Very vulgar!" The other commented

"And generally rude!" The first completed

"Well nothing some time in a cell won't fix right? Open it up and chain him to the wall. I have some...questions for him" The two guards went to work without question. They opened the door and not so kindly latched his cuffs to the chain on the wall.

"It is done Sir!" They said while moving away from the man.

"Good, the communications network channel to Atlas should be up by tomorrow. My promotion is in three days, which means I need to leave tomorrow so I can prepare. I cannot have anything interfere with that! Now leave us, I need to have a word with him alone"

The two guards looked at each other before turning back to their superior. "But Sir-"

"Did I not give you an order!? Leave! If I have problems, which honestly I won't, I will call you! Do as you're told!" She said sneering

The two guards had snapped back to attention at the tongue lashing. "Y-Yes Sir!" With that they both ran out, not wanting to face her wrath again, but also with a new appreciation for the strength of their superior.

"Honestly its so hard to find good help these days, but Atlas is still the best of the best. Isn't that right Doctor Whiskey?" She turned addressing the doctor as he struggled against his chains. He wasn't paying attention to her at all, and here she was giving him nice accommodations, keeping him in the best cell she had. That was not going over well. "Well say something you idiot! Seriously how did you become a doctor in the first place!"

He stopped trying to undo his chains at that and looked at Cordovin in contempt, like someone would look at a bug. "Mhhmm?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I can't seem to understand you and your 'language', can you speak up up?"

"Mhm, famm mhhmm!" The small man seemed to struggle against his chains again. This time while staring directly at Cordovin.

"Oh! Right!" Cordovin said with a smile, "You're still gagged! I thought that's just how you and your kind talked. Let me fix that for you" She walked over to the chained man and gripped the large strips of leather that was wrapped around his mouth. She gripped it and started pulling, earning a yell from the old man. At the apex of his scream she pulled a small knife out of her uniform and cut the stitches where the leather was tightened.

The leather snapped off his head, hitting him in the face and cutting his cheek. The doctor quickly spat out the sock they shoved in his mouth, It was used and tasted like dirt. He could feel the cut on his cheek stinging, but he wasn't going to let something like a cut break him. He had seen worse. Been through worse.

"There we go, ready to talk now?" Cordovin said putting back the small knife. "I usually get someone else to do that part, but you are a special case". She grabbed his face, turning his head to look at her. "Talk! You know what I want to know!"

Doc was old, and he had seen many things. Usually when someone gets taken down to a place like this they break. Some sooner than later, it depends on what they did to you. If you gave them what they want there was a chance they might let you go. It was slim, but generally even if they weren't going to let you go, if you give them what they want you could skip the part where they are forced to break you. So he did the most logical thing he could think of.

He spit in her face.

Cordovin stepped back, in shock that someone would dare do that to her. She was stunned and angry, oh so very angry. She used the leather to wipe her face, not sucessfully, but enough to where she didn't feel like she just got spit on.

"You and your moronic lackeys. Atlas is always the same, all words no action. By the time you do finally do something, you act like you've saved everyone. People are so happy to be alive, but they remember. You could have saved them all, instead you play politics with lives!"

Cordovin wanted to kill him. She could and no one would stop her. It was easy controlling the media since the CCT was strained. She could have said he died of a heart attack, and noone would know the difference. But she needed information first.

"How do you know about that town?" Cordovin said, getting straight to the point.

Doc still fuming at his circumstances, not felt his anger deepen. "You Atlesians! So ready to help people, except that you don't! That town is one of the many instances of the failure of your so called 'glory of Atlas'! You failed to do what was promised!"

"It was an unfortunate decision that had to be made at the time, not a failure. I am sure that Atlas would agree that the cost of troops would be to high just to save a couple of villagers"

"A couple? A couple!? Try hundreds! That was not a small village, but you wouldn't know since Atlas only came in once only a handful was left!"

"Villages come and go daily. It was no big deal. We were still at war, I was new, and military protocol needed to be followed!"

Now it was Doc's turn to smirk. "And I'm sure that in tension filled times like these Atlas will back one older military leader. Its not like they would make an example of you just to ease rising tension right? No, you're safe, right?"

Corodvin could see the path laid out. Atlesian politics were always more shaky than that of the military. Where the military would use a heavy hand and put down the riots, the politicians would always try to blame someone. Villianize them so that the people had someone to blame over just all of Atlas. She would loose everything. Forget her promotion, she would be court marshaled and live in a cell the rest of her life just so Atlas big-wigs could stay in power. Especially since she made the call to pull back.

"What if I just kill you, then the story never gets out" Cordovin said with a neutral expression on her face, staring down the chained doctor.

"You could, and the story would be remembered by some, but probably would never actually come out" Doc admitted, "But your people were not exactly subtle when they grabbed me coming into Argus. But only about half of Argus knows that I was 'taken to Cordovin herself'. Oh yes, you should be fine"

Cordovin's cover up plan went down the drain as the same consequences could come from rising tensions if one of the main local doctors ended up dead right after he saw her. Idiots every single one of them! Cordovin didn't say to be subtle, but couldn't they have been more subtle than that? He could be lying, but she doubted it. Doctor Whiskey may be a grouchy, old, Atlesian hating man, but he was not a liar. If anything he was too blunt.

"You cause me so many problems. You speak out against me and Atlas constantly. Several people would say you are the entire reason for Atlas's conflict in Argus. Several would thank me that you were gone"

"But the people of Argus and villages will not, and it will end the same, so what will it be?" Doc smirked.

Cordovin kept staring at him, thinking. Either way she had backed herself into a corner. But she never lost. Could not loose. It wasn't in her Atlesian nature to do so.

"I will think about that and get back to you" She turned and walked out of the cell, shutting and locking it.

"Where are you going? I have some more insults for Atlas stored up in here!"

"I have a promotion to get prepared for, so I'm afraid I cannot humor any longer. If you must, tell them to the spiders. At least the noise will show them where to find food"

Cordovin opened the large door to the cells, getting greeted on the other side by the two guards that brought him in. They had news of the military call, and were reporting back to their guard duty. The last Doc saw of Cordovin, she was smiling, thinking of her promotion, with all her troubles behind her.

-0-

Blake was enjoying herself. She was around a table, talking to her mother about all the things she had been through. So much had happened. To get it all off her chest felt like she was flying.

"-and now we're in Atlas. It gets really cold here, but I'm finally with my team again. Its like a dream come true"

Her mother Kali sat down beside her on a pillow. She handed Blake a cup of tea and smiled. "I'm glad you are happy Blake. You went through so much. I know you're a huntress and can take care of yourself, but your father and I still worry."

"Haha I know mom, but I swear I'm fine. My team will look after me" Blake took a sip of tea. It was still too hot to drink. If she wasn't careful she would burn her tongue.

"There is one thing you left out though"

Blake looked at her mom. Kali was still smiling a large smile.

"I didn't leave anything out. I told you about the train, the apathy, Argus, and Atlas. All that I have done between when I last saw you"

"But you didn't even mention me, my darling" a deep voice said from behind her.

Blake jumped up from the table, startled. She looked behind her, but just the wall greeted her.

"What's wrong Blake?" Kali said with a large smile, "Is something wrong?"

Blake looked around and saw nothing out of the ordinary. Blake sat back down "No mom, nothing's wrong. I just thought I heard someone"

"Was it me Blake?" Adam's voice came out of the side door. Blake jumped up again.

Her father pushed the door open. "Was it me Blake? Sorry for the noise dear, I am trying to keep it down, but politics never was my strong suit"

"Its okay dear" Kali said still smiling, "Carry on, I'll bring you some fresh tea later"

Her father left, but Blake wasn't crazy. She heard Adam. He was here...somewhere.

"Blake finish your tea before it gets cold" Kali said smiling

She grabbed her tea from the corner of her eye. "Sure, thanks mom"

Things were getting weirder by the minute. She pulled the tea to her lips. It was cold. She looked at the tea cup, which seemed to have small pieces of ice on it. The tea was rotating in the cup, turning darker and darker until it was pitch black.

"Now the tea is cold, just like me" Adams voice rang out around her. Blake dropped the tea cup and it shattered against the ground. When she looked up she was back on a cliff, overlooking a valley, with a waterfall coming off the ledge above the one she was on.

She looked at the edge, where a single hand grabbed the side. Another joined it. Then Adam pulled himself up onto the cliff. He pale skin contrasted his black coat he always wore. His mask was off, but his eyes were completely black.

Blake reached for her weapon on her back, but it wasn't there.

"Looking for this" the Adam voice rang out all around her.

The Adam in front of her now had the two pieces of Gambol Shroud sticking out of him. He started shambling forward coming towards her. Reaching for her.

"Blake I'm here for you"

Blake blinked and Adam was gone. She felt a pressure on her shoulder, a hand wrapping around it, a voice right next to her ear.

"I'll always be here"

Black fell all round her. She couldn't move. She was trapped! He had her! She had to get out! Out! Out! Out!

"Blake, We're here for you"

"NO!" She felt that she could move. She lashed out as quick as she could, cutting deep into Adam's arm before grabbing him and throwing him against the far wall. She looked around quickly. It was dark probably night, she was in a familiar room, but with what she just went through she couldn't think. She had to get out.

Blake scrambled to the door. She heard a commotion on the other side before the door exploded inward, almost crushing her. Four men in white suits holding guns came in. Blake was still panicked. Since she just took out Adam these must be his White Fang lackeys.

She pulled up her aura and slammed into the first one. The second one tried to grab her, but she dispatched him with a solid hit to the jaw. The fourth managed to tackle her to the ground. Before she could react the first one was pointing a gun at her face.

She realized her mistake when Qrow turned on the lights. "So much noise! Seriously I know you're young but come on! Wait. Whats going on here? Who are you guys?"

Qrow looked over at the wall and saw Ruby knocked out, blood coming from her arm. He instantly went on the offensive. All four men were knocked out with aura timed precision, Qrow using his anger and stress to knock them all out. He examined Ruby with a worried expression, bandaging her arm to staunch the blood flow. One quick call to Ironwood later and the room was filled with robots.

"Hello Qrow, I'm sorry to disturb you this early"

"Stuff it Ironwood. I just want to know why these four attacked my niece and her teammate"

Blake shrunk down, knowing now what happened. Ironwood looked at her knowingly and raised a hand. Suddenly all the robots in the room raised their weapons. All of them pointed at her.

Qrow squinted his eyes, analyzing the room. "Whats going on Ironwood. Talk! Before I do something I really won't regret"

Ironwood sighed, "I'm sorry to be the one to inform you of this but it has to be done" Ironwood pushed past Qrow to stand in front of Blake. "You are under arrest and pending trial for conspiracy in the aggravated assault of four Atlas councilmen, the attempted murder of one, and now apparently the assault and battery of a huntress in training. Please come without resisting"

Blake was in shock. She thought there would be some explanations and an apology given, but attacking a councilmen? She didn't know what was happening.

"Wait a minute Ironwood" Qrow spoke up, "What's going on. She was here the entire night. The only one I don't know about is Yang, and she should be back anytime now."

"No she won't. I know where Yang is" Ironwood looked at Qrow, "She is currently being held in a cell for attempted murder of a councilman, and pending other charges"

"What the hell!?" Ironwood this isn't funny!" Qrow was not buying this. Sure, Yang had a temper, but she had been in control as of late. She was doing better than she used to, and Qrow knew that Yang would never attack someone

"And if I were not present to witness her attack him I wouldn't believe it either, but its true! She attacked him, and I had to subdue her….I took no pleasure in it"

Either Ironwood was lying, which he didn't look like he was, or there was some serious problems the team was about to go through. "Huh, and I thought coming to Atlas was supposed to be easier than fighting off grimm and bandits. Turns out there are parasites here too"

Qrow was about to fight back. Ironwood knew this, Blake knew this. Even Weiss, who was trying to get Ruby to wake up knew this. Qrow looked from the droids, to Ironwood, to Blake, and finally on Weiss and Ruby. His gaze lingered there before he put his hands up.

Qrow spoke low, almost at a whisper, "I'll remember this Ironwood. Don't forget that"

Before Blake knew it Ironwood had cuffed Blake and started to pull her towards the door. Blake went willingly. She didn't know what was happening, but she knew it was bad. Right now though she knew one thing. She just attacked Ruby, her leader, her friend. She was unstable.

Better she be locked up where she could not hurt anyone else.

-0-

Pain lanced through Adam's head as he opened his eyes. He was being carried by someone he didn't recognize. The man was moving slowly, like he was walking through knee deep water. A look around proved otherwise. The mining facility was burning. Bodies of prisoners, guards and robots littered the grounds. The man looked down and realized Adam was awake.

"Don't worry sir. I promised that I would get you out, and I will." The man continued to walk. Compared to the man Adam was small. This man was built like a tank, with large muscles that told of several years in the mines.

"What happened? It all feels like a blur"

"You were amazing sir. You brought people together. You convinced us we could fight back when all hope was lost. Some people thought that you were just using us, but no, you were there with us on the front lines, fighting off guards!"

"I did?" Adam didn't remember doing that. He knew he fought, but he never thought that he was in the front. It always seemed that someone was there to take a stray bullet for him, to die for his safety.

"You were amazing! You unlocked and opened the doors that were already shut down so all the other prisoners could get out. And you distracted that bullhead so we could take it down! Then, you stole one of the large guns from the guards and used it to push them back!

This man had a very different view of the actions that lead them to this point. Adam did let the others out of lock down, which was more a stroke of luck with a lucky button push and lever pull in the control room. The bullhead distraction? He was terrified, screaming from one hiding spot to another in the chaos as it shot at him and his small band of prisoners. When it stopped he thought he got lucky. And the large gun thing, wasn't even him! His buddy who he knew as claws did it. Claws was able to push them back, but he paid the price for it when the dust went up.

"We lost track of you when the stored dust started exploding, but then I found you in the wreckage. Alive! To think that you inspired us to do this. I thank you, for giving me hope."

The man kept walking towards the far side of the base, towards the outer gates. As they went towards the gates Adam tried to get down, but the man held him tight, a determined look on his face. The closer they got, the slower the man seemed to get. There was a weariness to the man, and every once in a while he would stumble, but his grip held firm. His breath got labored.

Once they passed the gates the man stopped. Looking up he smiled and shed a single tear. "I'm out Martha. I'll be with you soon"

His grip loosened and Adam dropped like a stone. "Thank you" The man said. Adam thought he was going to say more, but he just stood there, facing the clouds.

"Are you okay?" Adam tapped the man's large chest

Suddenly the man fell over. Adam sidestepped as the man fell forward, showing the full extent of the damage. The mans back was littered with dust round holes. The man had a tail at one point, but now it was just a burnt off stub that showed the path they took with a trail of crimson.

Adam didn't know what to say. He was about to touch him again when a dart came out of the trees, hitting him in the arm. Everything went blurry, then there was black.

…..

…..

"-I don't care what you say doctor, we did not bring him to you for you to fix him, only to make sure he would not die!"

What was going on? Adam could here people talking, but it was cutting in and out. He was in pain. It hurt all over, but he wasn't dead, and that was a blessing.

"You came to me! He is my patient! I will not let you break what I just fixed!"

Break? Fixed? Were they talking about machines? No, that man said doctor. Were they talking about him?

He opened one of his eyes. The other was just too heavy to open. Looking around he saw several Atlas suits and a middle aged man in a doctors coat arguing with another Atlesian man. Said man turned around. Adam recognized him. He was the leader of the set of mines Adam was from. The man used to do PR in the mines to tell them how their sacrifice was 'for the greater good of society'. He was a thin pencil-like man that was young for his position. Adam couldn't remember his name though, he thought it was-

"Nicolas, I beg you, don't do this!" the doctor said

Completely ignoring the doctor he turned to look at Adam. "Ah, he's finally awake! I thought we would have to search through ruble to find you, but then you showed up outside the mine complex. It was perfect."

Adam shook. This guy had a reputation in the faunus for having extreme prejudice against the faunus, and even more for riots. What would he do now. He looked down, realizing he was strapped to a medical gurney.

"Nicholas!"

Nicholas picked up something from the fireplace on the far side of the room. "Now I just wanted to kill you at first, but as the mines collapsed, I figured out….well….something better. You need to remember who owns you. Atlas and the SDC own you!"

"Nicholas don't do it!" The doctor balled his fists and looked more determined than before.

"And what better way then to make it something you have to face everyday?" The SDC brand came out bright red. He walked over to Adam. "So lets get started"

"No!" The doctor jumped at Nicholas, trying to grab at the brand. The doctor almost had it before the guards from the doors grabbed him and pulled him back.

Nicholas was not happy. "Why you insolent little!" Nicholas swiped the brand against the doctors leg, earning a yell and a searing sound. "You had such potential Doctor Bronze. To think if that little incident with your wife hadn't happened, you wouldn't have tried to change things."

"You knew!?" the doctor, now on the floor clutching his leg asked worried.

"Of course I did you fool! You were such a good doctor too, but let me give you the information you want. Cordovin was the commander that made the call. And whats even more ironic, if you want to find her, just head home to Argus."

"Why?" the doctor seemed disbelieving

Nicholas started chuckling. "Simple, to prove to you that Atlas does not like sneaking. That no matter what chaos you cause, nothing will change! Atlas rules all!" Nicholas looked at the guards, "Now get him out of my sight. I never want to see him again!

Nicholas turned towards Adam, "Now where were we, oh yes!"

The brand had turned from red hot to a dull black, but Adam could still feel the heat coming off it when the man pushed it closer to his face.

"Know your place!"

Adam screamed.

-0-

Adam woke up. Opening his eyes he saw a wooden roof above his head. He still hurt, but it was much easier to move. He reached up to feel his face. He could still feel the fire scorching his face. The only reason he kept his eye was the interference of that doctor. That was so long ago though, that doctor was probably dead and gone.

The door at the end of the room opened. In came Sherry, in all her clumsy glory. She looked at him, and he stared back.

"You're awake!"

-0-

 **A/N: That was longer than I expected, and I still had to push some content. Oh well, until next time!**

 **Read and Review!**


	7. An Enemy and a Friend

**A/N: We are back! Here is the next chapter of Wilt and Blush. Sorry for being so spotty, but infrequently infrequent updates are infrequent.**

 **If you need something to pass the time you can check out my other stories. The newest one being 'A Simple Soul' a Ruby-centric story with some misunderstandings here and there.**

 **Either way, Enjoy!**

 **-0-**

An Enemy and a Friend

"You're awake! Finally! Oh, I thought for a minute that I did something wrong again, but you. Are. Back so all is good!"

Adam looked around the small room that he was in. He remembered being hurt, he remembered the fight, he remembered the fall. His new memories though were blurry. They were there, just hazy like trying to remember specific details of an event from along time ago.

Sherry looked excited. She was doing little twirls with a smile on her face, occasionally knocking over...basically anything she touched.

"Human...Sherry?…..Where am I?"

Sherry's smile falters as she looked at him. "You're in my parents bedroom. Where you've been most of the time. Oh no, you remember me right!?"

Vaguely. Everything was hazy. "I remember you" Sherry preened a little. "-And a torture device?"

"Ahh! I was trying to help!" Sherry said with a little pout. Sherry grabbed his arm and he felt something go through him.

"Don't touch me!" He flung her off harder than he meant to, with her falling onto the floor with a thud. He quickly got up to help her, but he felt a pain in his back. He fell on top of Sherry, earning a little squeak from the girl. He quickly rolled off of her onto the floor. "Sorry!"

Sherry immediately stood up, blush clear on her cheeks. "I'm gonna go get something to eat" she said as she rushed out the door. Only then did Adam realize he was only in boxers.

Well that did not go as planned. He got up and moved back to the bed. He felt odd. Stronger but lighter. The odd part was when he put his right foot down he felt a twinge in his back. Since he was expecting it this time it wasn't as bad, but it still hurt. The pain seemed to fade when a light came around his body, then faded. His aura…

Something told him that was wrong. He could feel his strength drain. That light feeling he had disappeared, but along with it, the pain.

He put some pants on and a shirt from one of the cabinets in the room. He grabbed the door handle when he heard a crash of what sounded like pans. He rushed out into the main area. Sherry was sitting on the floor rubbing her butt. Pans were scattered all around her, with a familiar sword stuck in the floor next to her.

"I forgot I put you in the top cabinet" She grabbed the sword and putting it on the counter as she got up. Only then did she realize that Adam was watching. "Oh um...I may have had an accident, no big deal, happens all the time.

Adam stepped up to Sherry. Sherry was startled when he didn't say anything and just stared at her for a second.

"Um...are you-"

"Where did you find this?" Adam said grabbing the sword.

"I found it in the river the day before I found you" She grabbed something out of the cabinet that the pots and pans fell out of. This goes with it. It was its sheathe as black as night.

"This is mine" He grabbed his head as some of the hazy memories came back to him. "Wilt and…. Blush"

Sherry's eyes lit up again. "Wait you remember. You remember! Mr. Bull, you got your memories back!?"

"Its Adam actually" he said when a rage came from his thoughts. "Mister Bull? That is so racist. Its things like that that make faunus hate degenerate humans"

Sherry looked down. "Sorry it was the first thing I could think of. I couldn't just keep calling you 'sir' all the time" She was genuinely sorry, but her face lit back up. "You remember though! We have to tell Doc, he'll know what to do now. I bet you're so happy!"

Adam tried to sort through his memories. They were still blurry, but some stood out. The saddest thing was for what he could tell most were not good moments. Death, torture, starvation, and the worst of all. Loss.

"Hey. Remnant to Adam? Come in Adam." He looked down towards Sherry who was waving her hands in front of his face. "Are you okay? You sorta spaced out there"

Adam sighed. "I just remember plenty. Too much." While saying this his hand went down, rubbing the wounds that were still healing. The ones that almost killed him.

Sherry smiled. "I know it couldn't be all sunshine and roses since you came in the way you did, but it couldn't be all bad. Right?"

Adam sneered. "What would you know about it human?" He grabbed the sword and sheathe and sword, putting them back together. He remembered the treatment of humans. The violence against himself and others just because they were not 'their kind'. "I think it's time for me to move on". He turned around, walking towards the door.

Behind him he heard Sherry. "What?" As he took some steps. "Wait! Whhaa!" A loud crash behind him made Adam remember a blade coming down towards his back. He flared his aura to stop the blade, only to feel a deep seeded pain shooting up his leg.

Adam went down yelling. Gripping his leg in pain. He rolled over onto his back seeing Sherry who had fallen over the cookware with a concerned look in his eyes. Adam's aura flickered and then broke.

Sherry crawled over to Adam reaching for his leg, "Hey are you okay-?"

"Don't touch me human!" He growled, "It feels like fire just went up my leg. What did you do to me!?"

Sherry was too concerned to care about the accusation. "I'll call Doc again, he'll know what to do" She got up and went over to the scroll. She quickly typed in the number for the clinic. "Yes, hello.

"Is Doc there?"

"….."

"What do you mean he's not available?"

"….."

"What about Doctor Bronze, his son?"

"….."

"Attacked by a crazy woman? Is he fine?"

"….."

Sherry looked at Adam who was using the back of the couch to get back on his feet, winching as he did so. He wasn't yelling anymore though. "Its not an emergency, but it is pretty bad"

"….."

"Fine, but tell him I called, will you?"

"…..."

"Thanks" Sherry got off the scroll. "Apparently Doc got into some trouble. Doctor Bronze his son got attacked by some woman that beat him half to death so he is recovering. Still working, but isn't really able to leave the clinic. She said we may have to wait a while, and be careful until then"

"There is no time!" Adam roared. He shuffled around the end of the couch, almost falling when he let go. "I have to find her" he said quietly.

"Look I don't know who this girl is but she would not want to see you kill yourself trying to find her!" Sherry said while going up to steady Adam.

Sherry heard him chuckle. "Then you don't know her" Sherry did not help but notice his hand go up to the wound on his chest. "That is exactly what she would want"

"I did not help you get better just to send you to your death! I don't care!" Sherry tried to pull him back toward the kitchen by his arm. She fell and Adam stumbled, catching himself on the couch again.

Adam looked like he was thinking on something, then went pale. "We have to leave"

"Like I said you are not lea-"

"No, WE have to leave to the doctor" Adam yelled still pale.

"Why? Whats wrong!?" Sherry looked concerned again.

Adam looked at Sherry, the first time in a long time she saw desperation in his eyes. "I can't feel my right leg"

-0-

Qrow was not having a good day. The interruption last night that informed him his niece was on trial for attempted murder made Qrow angry, sure, but also sad. Even though he promised Ruby he wouldn't, he found himself back at a bar...until a certain ice queen showed up at least. That had put a damper on things, but he spent the rest of the night with her. Talking. Getting things off his chest. And last, stratigising for the immediate fight.

Either was here he was. Walking down towards the trial room where two of the brats he promised to take care of were going to show up. Close to the end of the hallway was the other team. Scheming in silence.

"I still say we should just break them out fearless leader! First their legs, Then anyone who stands in our way!"

Ren looked at her, "Did you have sugar today?"

"~Maybe~"

Ren shook his head. "I'm going to end up throwing you into bed later" Ignoring the mumbled response of 'I hope so'

"Look", Jaune said, "We have to be there for Yang and Blake right now. Prove their innocence like that old lawyer game. We need facts, evidence, witness testimony, and the like. We will get them out!"

"Go fearless leader!"

"We have an hour before the trials start, lets move!" With that they ran back towards the exit, a determined look on Jaunes face.

It wasn't until they were completely out the door and Qrow moved closer to the trial room that he heard a voice behind him. "They are an interesting bunch of students aren't they? Determined in their goals. Never ceasing to stray into danger if it means to help a friend"

Qrow got a scowl as he looked down at the boy/old man/ deceiver/other names he shouldn't say in front of a boy his age. "What are you doing here Oz?"

"I am simply concerned for the lives of my students, as are you"

"I..." Qrow knew that was crap. After all they had gone through? Qrow was still not happy with Ozpin. He wanted to yell at him for all those years of loyalty just to find out the goal they were working for was for nothing. "Just...fine, forget I asked"

He turned around, about to walk off when he heard Oz shuffle behind him. "Um..Qrow...Where am I?"

He turned back to Ozpin. "Whadaya mean?"

"Well I remember waking up this morning, but then everything becomes hazy"

The Ozpin now Oscar stared back in confusion. Qrow sighed, "I'm too old for this..." Qrow walked into the trial room. It was laid out in a circular fashion with the seats up in a balcony like view over the middle of the room. The large white marble judge seat was also up higher against the back wall. Qrow got the impression that anyone on trial would feel insignificant. Small. Maybe that was the point, it was Atlas after all.

Qrow waited for what he knew was going to be an unfair trial, all the while thinking of different ways he could break Yang out if needed. People started filing in ten minutes before the trial was set to start. Right before it began he saw a very angry group of kids (JNR) run inside the trial room.

A large military man in uniform came in and stood next to the judges seat. "All rise for the glory of Atlas! All the Atlesian people rose up as some old man came waddling in. It looked to Qrow like the man would fall over just by walking to the seat. When the old man got to the seat Qrow recognized him, and dread settled over him. The military man stepped back to the front. "Everybody be seated in the honor of Councilman Chon!" The people sat back down.

"Bring in the first accused!" Chon said raspy.

Two soldiers, one being Winter brought in Yang, cuffed with aura suppressing cuffs. She had red and black rings around her eyes telling of a depressing night with no sleep. Her skin was pale but the biggest sign that she had it rough was her hair. It was unkempt, to call it dirty would be a compliment, and it had flies buzzing around it.

"Yang Xio-Long, you stand accused of conspiracy with a faunus, assault and battery, attempted murder of a councilman, terroristic threatening, and destruction of government property on top of other smaller charges. What do you plead?"

"…." She didn't respond. Yang stared at the ground. Not meeting the councilman's eyes or complying.

Chon grimaced, clearly annoyed. "Due to the inability to comply with basic demands you are found guilty of all charges. Yang looked up at that. Her eyes turned red again, which did not help the councilman. "You are stripped of your rank as a huntress and sentenced to a public execution along with your faunus conspirator!"

Qrow jumped up at that, along with JNR and Oscar who had sat with them. Qrow tried to jump over the railing, but he couldn't. Something was holding him back. He looked down and saw several layers of black glyphs on his feet, holding him to the ground. "Don't you touch a hair on my nieces head or you won't live to see another day!"

Chon smuggly turned to look at Qrow. "Just what we expect from a Branwen. Bandits don't know how to do anything besides murder and steal. Be quiet or you will be sentenced as well!"

"HOLD ON!" The door to the trial room swung open. Ironwood came in at a brisk pace, two smaller people that looked like kids in soldier uniforms carrying a dozen or so pamphlets a piece following behind him.

"Councilman Ironwood. To what do we owe the displeasure?" Chon said blankly

"Councilman Chon, this is a farce and you know it. You cannot pass judgment on this girl"

Chon looked enraged. "And why not!? You dare in my my own sanctity!? Guards detain Ironwood!" Nobody moved against Ironwood. Chon looked around confused and angry. Honestly with his age Qrow was surprised Chon didn't have a heart attack. "Well what are you waiting for guards! I gave you an order!"

Another soldier came running in. He went up to Ironwood and whispered something in his ear. Qrow saw Ironwood smile. That was never good. The so called 'general of steel' never smiled. Chon noticed this as well and started looking around. Angry but now scared.

"It is with great pride that I arrest you Councilman Chon as is my right as military leader of Atlas for money laundering and enslavement of Atlesian citizens!" Ironwood looked up to the old man. "Guards arrest him" Chon tried to stand up, but he was pushed back down by the same soldier that announced his arrival.

"What is the meaning of this!? I never!" Qrow had to hand it to the old councilman, he put up as much of a fight as he could, but he was hauled away. The audience was in a panic, but was kept down by the guards.

Qrow felt the release of Winter's glyphs when the councilman left. Winter stopped right before she left behind the councilman. She smiled at at him and nodded. It was one of those 'I did a better job' smiles, Qrow was sure about that. He jumped down next to Yang. "Are you okay firecracker?"

Yang shrugged, "I'm fine I guess. Looks like I missed the party, and I was a part of it. You could say its been Xio-Long of a time. hehe" It was weak, even for Yang.

Qrow looked over to Ironwood who was climbing up towards the trial box. "You used my niece!?"

"It was the only way Qrow, you wouldn't understand"

"No Jimmy I don't understand, and I really don't ever want to understand. Unlike some people, I won't use people for political gain"Qrow grabbed at Yang's cuffs. "Come on, lets get these off of you" Try as he might Qrow couldn't get them to come off.

"This is where you will really hate me Qrow" Ironwood said now sitting in the boxed seat. He looked towards Yang. "Yang Xio-Long, you and your faunus conspirator will not be executed and several of the charges will be dropped entirely due to circumstances surrounding this trial, but you did still attack a councilman"

JNR, Oscar and Qrow now listened intently. Qrow reached back to grab his weapon before remembering they were not allowed to take it out of the base due to the closeness to the 'prisoner'. Ironwood continued, "You and your partner will have your huntress statuses revoked, as well as being banned from Atlas for the foreseeable future"

There was an uproar by the croud. The Atlas parts were screaming that there was no justice and that the sentence was to light, while their little gang was screaming that it was unfair and Yang should be set free.

Ironwood got off the box, exiting through the door they pulled the Councilman through earlier. "Yang Xio-Long and Blake Belladonna will be on the first Atlas bullhead to Argus we can find. Trial dismissed. Guards drug Yang through a side door into the hallway, grabbing and pulling down Qrow when he tried to fight back against them. Yang looked shocked. The last thing Qrow saw before she disappeared behind a wall was a single tear.

-0-

Chardonnay was an interesting woman if she dared say so about herself. Think about it. She grew up in a farm in Mistral, yet now she was a specialist in the Atlas military. She was excited about this trip back home to take over the Argus military base that she remembered. She wondered how it changed over the years. Probably not much since the same person has been in charge.

Cordovin, always the pessimistic one. Chardonnay couldn't much blame her though. It worked well in Atlas, and certainly well in the military. Chardonnay would love to be able to command her own troops. She was a specialist, but she was more sent out for grimm and White Fang then she was given command of any troops.

Her ship finally landed on the Argus base. At least she knew the base wasn't in total disrepair from the flyover. She stepped out and was greeted by two large men with their Atlas caps lowered to the point that you couldn't see their eyes. "Hello Sir!" Both said while saluting. "We were waiting for you to arrive!" one said. ""So we could greet you!" The other continued.

 _Okay Chardonnay, time to do your thing_. "Cut the pleasantries! I want a line up of all personnel in the main courtyard in five minutes!" With that she walked towards the main courtyard, noticing the two men scrambling to try to get the message to everyone they could in that short amount of time.

Five minutes later there was something of a ragtag line up of individuals, some that looked like real soldiers, others that looked like people playing soldier. _Time to inspire the troops_. "Listen up!" That got their attention as all of them stopped. One unsatisfied look later and the lineup was at attention. "I don't know how Cordovin ran things, but I am in charge now! You are here because you have shown that you are useful! Strong! Independent! While I am here I will want to see these qualities!" She walked up and down the line while giving her speech, making sure she looked over each person. Finally she settled on a guard that did not look like a guard. More a boy in uniform. "-You will exude strength, because if I sense any weakness, I will snuff it out. Dismissed!"

-0-

Doc awoke to the sound of the large door to the cells opening. His back hurt due to sleeping on the rocky ground, his chains chafing his arms and legs. He looked up to see two guards opening the door to a familiar face.

"He is in here then?" Chardonnay said coldly.

"Yes sir! He is in the first cell." The small guard said.

Chardonnay took a few steps inside, never looking away from his cell, knowing that she was looking straight at him. The guard shut the door and followed behind her. She stopped and looked at the small guard. "Do you think me weak?"

"What? No sir! Defiantly not!" The guard looked scared.

"Yet you think that I need an escort to see a prisoner!?" She sneered.

"Yes sir! I-I mean no sir! I mean...Its policy sir!" The guard looked flustered and scared, not meeting Chardonnay's eyes.

"Look at me when I talk to you soldier!" Chardonnay yelled making the guard flinch but look her in the eyes. "You will give me an hour alone with the prisoner, while you can patrol the outer wall of the fort!"

"But..."

"Is that clear!"

"Yes mame!" The small guard ran towards the door, opening it quickly and slamming it behind him.

Chardonnay sighed before walking slowly over to the cell. "Always a pleasure to see you again Doc" She did a small smirk

"Chardonnay, you haven't lost your sense of Atlesian pride it seems. Done playing specialist?" Doc also smirked.

Both stared at the other. After a period of time both started chuckling that became full blown laughter.

"It really is always a pleasure to see you Doc. How have you been?" Chardonnay said whipping a tear from her eye.

"Well" he said holding up and jiggling his arm chains, "I've been better, but I have been worse so...not bad. You did a number on that guard. I bet he wet himself.

"Small Atlesian guards. For some reason every fort I've gone through has always had one. Don't know why that is." Chardonnay questioned.

"So does anyone suspect you?" Doc said looking serious

"Doc! Not so loud. Look I sent the guard away but these cells are probably bugged" Chardonnay got close to the bars, whispering to Doc. "No one suspects a thing. When I left there was a trial about to start for two women. Both are huntresses that I think will work with us against Atlas but you have to be careful."

Doc shrugged, "I'm always careful"

Chardonnay got a blank face. "You are blunt and stubborn, literally the opposite of 'being careful'. Maybe I should leave you in here."

Doc grabbed the bars, his chains pulling tight as they stretched to their max. "You know for a fact that if I go down there will never be justice for Saisei!"

Chardonnay sighed. "I know, I'm just messing with you. You will have to stay in here for a couple of days until I can find a reason to release you, you know that right?"

"I do. I just hope they go fast. I'm not as young as I used to be and this floor is doning nothing for my back". He stopped thinking before looking back at Chardonnay, "Hurry. While Cordovin is away we need to act!"

"I know. I know" Chardonnay said. We have an opportunity with these two though. One supposedly attacked the Councilmen. The other is supposedly her conspirator"

"Fine. If you get the chance, but only if it looks like they will help" Doc said.

Chardonnay looked around before walking back towards the door. "Oh and Chardonnay?" She turned back towards Doc. "Visit your sister Sherry" Chardonnay raised her eyebrow questioningly. Doc chuckled a little, "Lets just say her life just got interesting. Remember, for Saisei"

"For Saisei" She opened the large door and shut it behind her, Doc hearing a yell as she switched back to her Atlas persona. Probably off to ruin another guard's life.

"Guess I've got nothing to do but wait" He laid back down next to the back of the cell wall. "For Saisei". With that he went to sleep.

-0-

Chardonnay was done with today. After the talk with Doc she thought the day would get easier, but no. Cordovin may love her 'glory of Atlas', but for all her talk Argus base was barely functional. Running off old technology and its people showing no motivation to do an overhaul, but just wanting small changes.

She lowered herself into the chair she had in her private quarters. She grabbed one of her suitcases and opened it. Inside she had her uniforms along with some casual clothes. Pushing the casual clothes aside she found her scroll. It had been a long time since she had turned it on, a few months at least.

She knew she would probably find messages about her mother's funeral, and the farm being given to Sherry. What she didn't expect was several voicemails from her sister Asti dated more recently. She wondered how Asti was doing, not hearing from her in so long. She wondered if she was still going by her alias 'Heather'. Ever since she meat and married her husband and had her daughter Asti had thought it necessary for her to have one for her huntsman missions.

' _One can never be to careful_ ', says the most explosive and carefree of them all. Still Chardonnay knew that Heather Shield was a top notch huntress.

She clicked the most recent voicemail, putting it up to her ear to listen. She expected a 'hello', maybe an update to know that Asti wasn't dead in a ditch somewhere. She did not expect what she heard.

"CHARDONNAY! Sherry found a MAN! Not a fake one or some small ugly one, but a big one! He looked strong, and though he was hurt when I saw him he looked huntsman grade! OUR SHERRY HAS BECOME A WOMAN!" Several more lines of disbelief came out of Asti before the voicemail recording cut her off.

Chardonnay remembered Doc saying she should visit Sherry. _Her life just got interesting_. She looked over at her casual clothes, grabbing the small picture she always kept in the side of her luggage that showed her mother and her sisters all together.

"Maybe I should visit after all" _If nothing to vet this 'man' that Asti was going on about_.

-0-

 **A/N: That took longer than I thought it would. Also Happy Fourth of July!**

 **Some people might think I am OOCing Adam, but I wanted to keep his hatred to humans while also keeping his appreciation to Sherry for saving him.**

 **Until next time! Read and Review!**


	8. Look to the Past Part 1 Atlas

**A/N: Poke. Hello! Welcome back! I hope you are having a good day.**

 **ThatSexyShikamaru: Thank you for reading!. I try to subvert some expectations if I can. I think it makes a story more interesting...unless I am trying to be funny. Either way, thank you!**

-0-

Look To The Past…[Part 1, Atlas]

Qrow was not having a good day. Its not everyday that your niece gets banned from an entire continent. Luckily there were some people who he knew he could take his anger out on. He pushed through the door leading into Ironwood's office, daring someone to try and stop him. He glared at Ironwood, who sat behind his desk going over reports. Qrow may not have his weapon right now, but he could still make Ironwood look like a sniveling baby. Qrow went over and slammed his hands down onto Ironwood's desk, making papers fall off and onto the floor.

"You Sorry bastard!"

Ironwood looked up calmly, still holding some of the paperwork he was looking over, "Ah, Qrow. What brings you here?"

"Don't give me that! You know why I'm here! I should beat you for that little stunt you pulled. I should kill you since it involved my niece!"

"You don't have your weapon" Ironwood said calmly.

"You think I need it Jimmy?! I always was better than you" Qrow growled out as he glared daggers at Ironwood.

Qrow felt something heavy on his shoulder blade. "I will not have you threaten the general." Qrow looked over to see the Ice Queen in all her glory. She had one of her sabers on his shoulder, the other in her other hand.

Qrow looked at Ironwood, "At least you're not that dumb, but this isn't over" Qrow walked back to the door, noticing how Winter kept her guard up. She was ready for Qrow to attack. She didn't trust that it was the end. "Now I have to go un-crush some kids"

-0-

"Should we have told him sir?" Winter asked Ironwood soon after Qrow left.

"You are dismissed Winter"

"But sir-"

"Dismissed!"

Winter stood at attention and saluted, shuffling out of the room shortly after. She walked through the Atlesian halls. She made sure she had a calm air about her. It would be...unbecoming if someone of her stature was to overreact to a situation. This one needed to be reacted to. She knew internally that when the situation escalated, it would escalate quickly.

"Oh if it isn't Specialist Shnee! How wonderful it is to see you again after all these years!"

In front of her stood Cordovin. She knew her from the reports. A charismatic leader practically fueled by Atlesian hopes and dreams. She saw bravery in battle and knew how to command under the most dire of circumstances.

But her downsides were just as long if not longer. Stubborn, with a racist streak that practically screamed 'Atlesian Noble'. She had no trouble with throwing wave after wave of troops into a battle regardless of whether the odds were against them or not. There were reasons why she was only allowed to command and serve as leader of a base.

"Specialist Cordovin. Nice to see you as well. Congratulations on your promotion"

Cordovin got a pretentious smirk and held her head high, even if she was shorter than the average person. "Yes, I think I will make an excellent Lead Specialist. I am finally getting recognized for my years of dedicated loyalty protecting one of the most prestigious bases we have outside of Atlas itself!"

She may have been patting herself on the back to much, but Winter let it slide. "Truly in the upcoming battles we may rely on your base then." It sounded robotic in Winter's mind. Something you say to know that a conversation is over. Cordovin smiled a fake smile as she picked up on it all too easily.

"Of course Specialist Shnee. Have a good day"

Cordovan left down the hallway opposite Winter. Winter noticed Cordovin's 'smile' and 'pride' never reached Cordovin's eyes. Winter was surprised, but not all that much that Cordovin did not salute her. She was still the superior officer, but for as much as Cordovin prattled about Atlesian respect and loyalty, she only viewed herself as superior.

Winter went back to her office. Being a lead specialist came with a lot of perks. She had subordinates that she could order around. She could do independent research into different problems for Atleasian command, and as long as she got them approved by Ironwood, could do random raids on know or suspected terrorist locations.

On the other hand...paperwork. So much paperwork. She sat at her desk for what seemed like hours. After what seemed like hours she looked at her desk. She was always neat and proper with her work. It made her more efficient. A strong leader needed efficiency! A strong leader needed confidence! A strong leader needed-

She heard a knock at the door. She got up and opened it, one hand on her saber. He nerves in the field never truly went away, and while it made her look paranoid sometimes, it saved her life enough times that she didn't care. Thankfully this time it wasn't needed.

"Specialist Schnee! This is the paperwork that is needed to authorize and officially end the troop movements, White Fang activity, and the trial that was held today. I have been told they are needed by the end of the week." What followed him were two lower ranked cadets. Both held stacks of paperwork that they put on the side of her desk...The side she just got cleaned off of last weeks paperwork. The cadets shuffled out of the room. The man saluted her and left as well, leaving her with paperwork she could bury a beowolf in.

Winter sat back down at her chair. Where was she? She grabbed the first sheet of the stack, which she had to stand back up to reach. Ah, yes. A good leader needs to be thorough!

 _With this document I hereby sign that I have read and do authorize the use of military personnel [pg 5] to take out the orders under command of Sargent Smithson [pg 7] to undertake operation Redlight as described in this report [pg 8-75]. Furthermore-…._

A good leader needs a break. She rubbed her face with her hands. This would take her forever to finish. They said they wanted it by the end of the week? What day was it? She looked up at her pristine and daily noted calendar. It was Thursday afternoon…

Winter got up, throwing her old uniform from this morning off and replacing it with a fresh uniform. How could she forget? Winter hadn't seen Weiss today, and with the trial implicating her teammate(s), she would probably want to talk to her. She knew that Weiss never left Ruby's side since she was admitted to the hospital for that gash in her arm. Yes this was the perfect time to see her. Winter opened the door to the hallway and shut off the light to her room. She stepped into the hall, taking one look back at the stacks of paperwork on the desk. Yes, it was very much the time to see Weiss.

-0-

Weiss was having just the perfect day. I mean why not right? Its not like bad things are happening right? So her partner has been in a hospital since last night, yet to wake up. So her other two teammates were almost sentenced to death and have now been kicked out of the country. HaHaHa everything is good right.

...Her world was burning down around her…

She splashed water in her face. Weiss looked into the mirror of the bathroom she was in. She had now been in the hospital for almost twenty-three hours. Almost a full day and it showed. Weiss had no access to a bathroom shower, nor did she have any comfortable nights sleep. The little rest she did get was in an uncomfortable chair that sat on the side of Ruby's room.

It was only natural that she would be there for her partner. Its not like she could go back to her house. Her father disowned her, cast her out, just like he had done with her older sister. That didn't do her hair justice though. He braid she had was unkempt, with tufts of hair sticking out in all directions. "My hair is utter disaster" she groaned at herself in the mirror. "Just one more thing on the list to fix"

"Maybe I could help you with that one"

Weiss jumps back startled as she sees her sister standing beside the bathroom door. "When did you get here?"

Winter's unchanging face says it all. "Longer than you would want"

Weiss sighed again. She looked down defeated.

A pair of arms wrap around her, holding her close. Weiss needed this. It made her feel comfort. Like some of the pent up stress she had slipped away in the comforting grasp of her sister. "Come on lets fix your hair"

Her sister turns her around and starts undoing some of the unkempt braids. Weiss stayed silent while her sister put her hair back together in the small hospital mirror. Winter halfway through started humming.

Weiss recognized it as a little tune their mother used to sing before...well before she wasn't herself anymore. The words came easily in her mind.

 _Oh lights in the sky, beauty so bright_

 _Shadowed in the day, and loving at night_

 _oh bring me your warmth, wrap me so tight_

 _For I need your love and your sparkle and light_

 _so keep me your own, until dawn comes tonight_

It brought a tear to he eye. It made her feel at least a little calmer, a little less worried."Winter...thank you"

Winter turns her back around, having fixed her hair. "Don't worry Weiss" Winter walked back over to the door. "It will all be explained soon. Now lets go see your teammate"

Weiss smiled a little bit before remembering the trial. She was with Ruby at the time, and choosing between one friend and the other was hard, but she watched the trial on the TV, at least up until the feed was cut. She knew her sister was involved, but she couldn't get herself to be mad at her. Winter was her role model, and if she was being honest, more of a mother figure to Weiss than a sister.

"Winter I-"

A nurse came running up to the pair. "Is one of you Weiss Schnee?"

Both sisters look at each other before looking back at the panting nurse. Weiss finally answered her. "Did you have to ask?"

"Its protocol! But no" The nurse caught her breath, "Your team leader is awake!"

The nurse was immediately swept of her feet as Weiss grabbed her and started running back towards Ruby's room. Winter fell into a steady, more even pace behind them, chuckling at her sister's newfound energy.

Weiss burst into Ruby's room, still dragging the nurse, who looked very shaken. Ruby was being talked to by two Atlesian doctors. One was young. Weiss recognized the young doctor as the primary doctor given to Ruby by Atlas academy itself.

The other was older. He was in an Atlas wheelchair, with a balding head. Weiss had never seen this person before. Both doctors had stopped talking when Weiss burst in. The younger one looked annoyed while the older one looked interested.

"Ruby!" Weiss yelled out.

Ruby smiled and waved her hand on the arm that was still bandaged. "Hi Weiss"

Weiss walked over rather quickly, letting go of the nurse halfway in to grab Ruby's wrist and force it back down onto the bed. "Don't move it you dolt! You aren't healed yet!"

"Weiss I'm fine" Ruby says a little too calmly, infuriating Weiss.

"The giant gash under those bandages and the fact that your aura didn't heal it says otherwise!" Weiss says raising her voice.

The old man starts laughing form his wheelchair. "Oh to be young again" He laughs with a huge smile. Weiss jumped back away from Ruby, going pink and letting go of Ruby. Ruby just sat there smiling and chuckling a small bit.

"As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted", the young doctor said, "You have to be careful with that arm. The wound might reopen again. Your aura will help it heal faster, but since you were pierced by a huntsman's blade, it will take longer as your arm has to flush out the foreign aura."

"That's one thing I don't understand" Ruby said, "What do you mean 'A huntsman's blade'? I am pretty sure I figured out what happened, even though it happened so fast, but I was stabbed with a boot knife, not a sword."

Weiss looked at Ruby like she must be joking.

The doctor looked at Ruby with a 'you have to be kidding me' look."You are a huntress, yes?"

"I am", Ruby said smiling happily. "I have been for years"

"And yet you don't know what a 'huntsman weapon' means?" The young doctor looked even more stupefied.

Ruby scrunched up her face and thought for a second. "Eh, nope" Ruby swore she heard Weiss say 'dolt' silently as Weiss slapped her forehead. Must have been a bug or something. The old doctor just kept chuckling.

The young doctor sighed, "A 'huntsman's weapon' is anything that a person capable of manipulating aura puts into their weapon, so it doesn't necessarily have to be a sword, or even a blade. When that weapon pierces grimm, it disrupts their regeneration, but it acts almost the same when used against another aura wielder."

"Huh, so that's why uncle taught me that. I just thought it was a basic thing for attacking grimm. I didn't know it had such a broad meaning."

The young doctor looks between the group and sighs again. "You are free to go, just remember what I said about the wound."

"Yes, yes she understands" the old man said almost doing a one-eighty in mood. "Now I have important business with her"

The young doctor sneers at the rudeness, but walks out of the room, bowing slightly to Winter as he passes her.

"Good, good" The old man clicks a button on his chair that makes it roll back and forth. "I am excited aren't you so much to do! So much to discover!"

Weiss and Ruby were confused. Winter stared on, already knowing who this old man was and knowing of his antics. The old man stops his chair, like he just realized they were standing still staring at him. "Well don't waste time! I have no time for slackers! I punish slackers!" His face goes calm again before he smiles. "Oh this will be so much fun! Lets go!"

Ruby slid out of the bed, happy that she seemed to still be in her clothes, the only things missing were her socks and shoes, which she saw next to the chair. She quickly put them on.

"Wait Ruby", Weiss says with concern on her face. "Do you know this old man? Why are you going with him?"

"I don't know him, but something is telling me I should go with him. I don't know why."

"Just...be careful okay" Weiss looked down covering her face, "I don't want to loose you, okay"

Ruby smiled big, "Dawh Weiss! I knew you cared"

Weiss pouted and went over to stand next to Winter as Ruby followed the eccentric old man down the hall. Winter looked at Weiss with a smirk on her face. "Want to talk about it?"

Weiss raised an eyebrow, "Talk about what? I have nothing to talk about."

Winter just continued to smile as they started their own journey down the hall, going towards the opposite side door of course. "If you say so, just know I am always here to talk to."

They got to the large door out f hospital before Weiss asked a question Winter wasn't expecting. "So who was that old man anyway? You seemed to recognize him."

Winter was surprised. "You mean you didn't? He is known as one of the greatest men in Atlas short of Ironwood himself. A certified genius, if not also certified with insanity. The greatest scientist the world has ever known."

Weiss paled even more. "You mean that was-"

"The very same"Winter stated, "It seems you recognize him now"

For the umteenth time Weiss put her face in her hands. "And I let him take Ruby with him. Tell me Winter will she survive?"

Winter mulled it over for a second. "She is strong. She will, but she will never be the same."

There was silence as they walked through the streets. Mild chatting on random topics here and there. Both commented and took joy in how their father seemed to be struggling under the dust embargo. After a while Winter left Weiss to go 'back to work'. Winter looked defeated already when she left.

Weiss had enjoyed the company of her sister. She just couldn't bring herself to hate her, not after everything that Winter had done for her over the years. Even with the trial incident she was clearly apart of. "Oh no, I still never told Ruby about Yang and Blake"

-0-

Ruby was lead by the old man out of the hospital and through several back alleyways. The first one she went through she was a little suspicious of why the old man was bringing her through a back alley. After three or four more, with the old man looking around every corner suspiciously, Ruby calmed down.

"Why are we going through back alleyways? Can't we just take the main street?"

The old man smiled. "Oh you can never be too careful. People have wanted to get me for years. Those monsters will pay for what they have done!" He smiled again, "But the new knowledge is worth it" With that the old man continued down the alley, finally turning into a door.

After two more doors they got too what looked like a reception desk. The old man dinged the bell I front of the desk that had a sign written on it specifically that said 'DO NOT RING'.

He looked around confused. He dinged it again. This time the door behind the desk that went into a back room opened, with a young boy coming to sit at the desk. "You're finally back father" Ruby noticed he said it sadly, like he was unhappy that he was back.

"Yes I am! I know you're so happy you can barely contain yourself! I brought a guest too!" He furrows his brows, "You better have cleaned up your mess, you know I hate messes!"

The boy sighed, "Yes father. Should I add her to the list of approved people then?"Ruby felt awkward as the boy looked at her. He had dark bags under his eyes, like he had been up for days without sleep. He looked at her like she was nothing. Not a prideful look, just...uncaring, like this either happens all the time or she was so uninteresting that the boy could care less.

"Might as well...wouldn't want her to explode now would we" The old man chuckled. He looked over at Ruby. "Introduce yourself Now!"

Ruby didn't like the intensity now focused at her, but she shuffled up to the desk. "Hi, I'm Ruby nice to meet you." Ruby smiled and held out her hand for a handshake.

The boy just stared at her and glanced down at her hand, but made no effort to move. *Sigh* "Nice to meet you as well." He looked back at the old man. "She is now registered and can enter without worry"

"Thank you that puts a load off my mind" the old man said before waving at Ruby to follow him through a door left of the round desk. Ruby took on last look back at the small boy who was now staring at his hand with the same sad look on his face.

"Donnie is nice don't you think? Not my best work but he is my son and I love him. When he does his damn job!"

Ruby has even more questions now. One stood out that she should have asked earlier. "I never did ask what is your name?"

The old man chuckled. "I have had many names" He lead her through a large hallway. "I used to be called Nicholas, but you would know me by another name now". He slams through two large doors into a wide room with several sections for different sciences. What was in the middle of the room though left Ruby speechless. There were several cords coming from the ceiling connecting to two tables. One was empty, but the other had a very familiar person on it.

"You would know me as Doctor Polentina" The doctor went over to the table that held the familiar form.

He got a dark look in his eyes. "Now lets talk about my daughter"

-0-

 **A/N: And that is it.**

 **This is [Part 1 Atlas] because I had way too much to actually write out. Part 2 will be [Part 2 Argus], which deals with what is happening with the characters in Argus at the same time.**

 **Donnie is actually properly D0NN13**


	9. Look to the Past Part 2 Argus

**A/N: Hello! Its been a while.**

 **This new season is good so far. I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have.**

 **This is going to focus on the people that are in Argus and is the counter to last chapter, happening at the same time.**

-0-

Look to the Past…(Part 2 Argus)

Adam was not having a good day. Besides the pain that kept coming back he was now subject to this...mess

"Inner peace. Now breathe in. Hold it. Now let it out. Bring a new breath in. Good. Remember that negativity breads grimm. You don't want to turn into a grimm do you?" The radio in the car kept going while Adam waited patiently for Sherry to come back from inside the house.

The thought that this counted as calming was stupid. It just infuriated Adam that people listened to this. And what did he mean 'turn into a grimm'? Stupid human didn't even know basic grimm facts.

"That was Ari Averett, the local peacekeeper and the best faunus guru in Argus" The host said.

"Thank you for that. I am just trying to do some small part to help my brothers and sisters that live in Argus and surrounding villages"

"Inspiring words. I hope you come see us again. Now back to Argus news" There was an audible click as the radio went over to recorded news. "Reports stating that disappearances in Argus are on the rise. What seemed like random disappearances now have a pattern. All appear to be faunus but besides that, there have been no other connection be it economic or political"

"I FOUND IT!" The red puffed face of a worn-out Sherry scrambled into the old truck. "Dumb me of the past, of course I put it in my underwear drawer. It should have been the first place I looked." She then realized Adam was sitting there in silence staring at her...while she talked about her underwear….oh my Gods so embarrassing!

Sherry started the old truck as Adam thought about Sherry, not realizing he was staring. _Sherry is not like any normal human girl I have seen. Most that I know about have an air of superiority around them. Though I do only tend to run into huntresses…_

"Umm, you might want to hold on. I have been told that others don't exactly like my driving"

"Sherry you have taken care of me these last few weeks. I trust you. Even if you are human" Adam said with a genuine smile. He winced with the last part of his own statement. Maybe being taken care of by a human had turned him soft. He knew he defiantly changed. Though loosing your identity certainly would do that to someone.

Sherry noticed the wince. "Oh no! Is your leg hurting again?! Don't worry, we'll get there fast!"

-0-

Adam Had survived countless battles against Atlas. He had survived even more battles against the never-ending flood of grimm. He never believed himself the 'best hunter', but he always knew that he was strong. He was someone to look up to someone made of stronger stuff.

Someone to be feared.

He never expected to die in a tragic car accident. "Watch the the ROA-!" The truck hit another pothole, banging his head into the roof. Only then did he realize there was no seat belt on the passenger side. He yelped out in pain only prompting Sherry to go faster, thinking that he was in even more pain, witch caused him more pain while being thrown about.

"Don't worry Doc will fix it! I swear!" Sherry shouted, looking at him and forgetting about the fact that she was driving just long enough for Adam to see his life that he just remembered to flash before his eyes. The amount of potholes on the road fixed those flashes bringing his back to a bruised head and wounded pride.

Adam grabbed a hand grip rail that was attached to the roof the truck door, also called the 'oh shit' handle. He gripped it tightly. "I'm fine, just get us there fast"

That seemed to be all the motivation Sherry needed as she went closer to the middle of the small road, swerving away from a large pothole on their side while almost driving an atlas jeep in the other lane off the road. Adam was sure the driver of the jeep was furious, but he didn't care. For the first time in his life it wasn't because the people were probably Atlesian, but it was because he feared for his own life over theirs.

For a second he thought that everything was going to be okay. The road smoothed out and became paved, loosing the several potholes that plagued it in the outer wilds.

The outer walls of Argus came into view. Sherry seemed to fiddle back and forth with the steering wheel and her hair. She looked at him a couple of times and stared whistling. Adam tried to ignore her, but the longer he did the more restless Sherry seemed to get.

"Soooo….." Sherry said looking out the side window.

Adam was not exactly in a chatty mood. Thinking about it, he woke up this morning with memories he didn't know he had, about events that even now he was still piecing together, and when he tried pain and loss of feeling followed. He still couldn't figure out if he was lucky to be alive, or unlucky that Sherry found him.

"Umm…." Sherry looked like she wanted to say something badly.

Adam sighed, "If you have something to say spit it out already!" Adam must have startled her as she swerved into the other lane. He gripped to handle hard as the truck bounced, throwing him slightly off his seat, and all the cabs contents onto the floor. "Watch the road!"

"S-Sorry!" Sherry quickly swerved back into the proper lane as the walls of Argus started to loom over them. After a bit more driving they saw several more vehicles that were coming in and out of a checkpoint at the wall. They stopped behind a line of vehicles going into Argus. Sherry opened a compartment that had several magazines, some makeup, and other things, including a hat that quickly all fell out onto the floor in front of Adam. Sherry bent down over Adam and shuffled through the materials, grabbing the ballcap and putting it on his head.

"What is this?" Adam understood what was happening but didn't want to believe that it was what he was thinking.

"I'm sorry but this is Argus. I know the people here are good people but this will go smoother if they don't think your a faunus"

Adam sneered. This girl is just as bad it seems. He thought she was different, but this dashed his hopes.

Sherry looked at Adam's face and misinterpreted it. She grabbed his leg softly, "Does it still hurt?"

Adam didn't respond, which didn't help his case. It didn't hurt and some of the feeling was coming back. It was like his leg went to sleep and is finally waking up. A 'pins-and-needles' feeling encased his lower leg, but he still couldn't feel his foot.

Sherry was still leaning over, now trying to adjust his cap when a knock at the window of the truck caused Sherry to jump back into her seat. She quickly rolled down her window.

"Hello Sherry. Going into town on normal business?" The random guard asked smiling.

"No, actually I am here to see Doc for my friend here" Sherry pointed out Adam, who still ticked off looked away with a frown.

"Ah, well I know he got into some trouble but his son is still running the hospital."

Sherry nodded, "Then that's who we'll see"

"Okay, now protical" the guards face turned neutral. "I need to see your Argus Identification"

Sherry fumbled a little bit looking for the card she searched so hard for at the house. She finally found it underneath her seat. "Here you are, sorry for the wait" She handed it over as the guard wrote something down on the pad he had before giving Sherry back her ID.

"Everything seems in order, so you can go in" He paused and looked at Adam. "And Sherry… I never thought I would have to tell anyone but your sister this, but while your in Argus please keep your more...promiscuous activities with your boyfriend to a private location."

Adam's head slingshot around to look at the guard. Then looked at Sherry.

Sherry was confused and then went red as she thought about what the guard must be thinking. Sherry gripped the wheel and hit the gas speeding into Argus screaming. "It's not like that!"

Adam was just glad the guard took enough time for the line in front of them to disappear, or Sherry would have killed them both.

Well Welcome to Argus…

-0-

"Look Lilly, I don't think you should go with me. You've been sick recently and I don't want you to feel exhausted."

"If you are going to come up with an excuse at least make it a good one. I know that it is dangerous, but you know you'd be in trouble without me" Lilly smirked, "Plus you seem to get yourself into trouble."

Dr. Bronze looked at his wife. "what about the baby? We don't need you to be strained"

Lilly rubbed her large stomach. She was close to giving birth. Maybe a handful of weeks, though Dr. Bronze senior thought it would be sooner. "The baby will be fine. I will be fine" She cupped his cheek, brushing aside some of her husbands hair. "Its you I'm worried about. They have been overworking you. I know that the world is in tatters right now, but I don't want to see you like that. I want to know _you_ are safe."

Dr. bronze looked to his wife. She always did have him wrapped around her finger. She had a stunning figure with long brown hair and tanned skin. She was the love of his life. He grabbed her hand, enjoying the sensation of her touch.

She came in and held him close. "Let me come. Please?" The fact that she said it while holding him, and her head buried in his chest gave him shivers. He couldn't say no.

"Fine, you cane come. But I don't like it"

She moved away and did a little jump, throwing her hands up in the air. Smiling she said "You said I can come!"

"Yes, yes I said...Wait, you tricked me!"

Lilly looked away. "I don't know what your talking about"

She put her hand on her belly again before quickly grabbing his own and putting it on under her own. Dr. Bronze felt a bump, and then another. "See", Lilly said, "Even the baby is celebrating. This is the most active she's been in a while"

"I keep telling you it will be a boy"

Lilly pouted. "You don't know that! Only your father knows and he refused to say."

"No, did you see that big smile of his after the examination. I know for a fact that he only gets that happy when he talks about 'passing down the business' to me. He is happy that I already have a successor as one so young"

"Lets agree to disagree. I think you just love to be difficult sometimes" She walked towards their bedroom with her hands cupped behind her back.

He smiled, "You know you love it!"

-0-

This was not what was supposed to happen! THIS WAS NOT HAPPENING! It started out fine. The Atlas squadron from Argus base helped fly them out to the village providing protection from the grimm that were roaming from the battle a couple days ago. Some soldiers and some experienced huntsman. It should have been easy.

Should have been.

The small village was a mixed village of faunus and humans. It was supposed to should solidarity. That the races could coexist. When a splinter cell of the main forces of the faunus came in calling themselves the Red Wolves, they were put down mercilessly by Atlas troops.

What set of a spark was when a kid faunus jumped in front of his father who wasn't a part of the red wolves, but spoke out against Atlas in front of the huntsman. The huntsman showed no mercy in killing the 'animal and his spawn'. People panicked, and that drew grimm. More than expected.

"Lilly! Lilly!" He ran down another street. "Lilly! Where are you!"

When it started he had been helping the sick and wounded. Being a town so close to a battle, there were stragglers that were left for dead on both sides that the village tried to save. He may not have been a doctor for long, but his father taught him everything he knew. Lilly had been helping with the female patients, when not being swarmed by the other mothers of the village interested in her pregnancy.

He was called up, more like grabbed and thrown, up to a disturbance at the edge of the village where he found Atlesian troops killing grimm and villagers all the same. He helped people to safety, dragging the wounded and screaming. What hurt the most was when he had to grab children. Children!

When the house the huntsman were operating out of burned down and the fire spread, they knew things were getting bad. The now roaming grimm made it worse.

Dr. Bronze heard a scream as he rounded a corner followed by a sickening crunch. When he looked he saw a young girl that couldn't have been older than a teen being devoured by a Beowolf. The dead eyes still filled with tears and fear haunted him. He backtracked. He had to find Lilly, needed too.

At the outskirts of the village opposite the grimm incursion he finally found people. There was a small communication tower that connected to a building with a big sign that said 'Welcome to Saisei!'

"Halt! Don't come any closer!" A man at the door said. He was obviously an Atlas huntsman just by his atire.

"You know who I am! We don't have time for this! Is my wife here!?" Dr. Bronze yelled.

The man looked down the street, where three beowolves heard the commotion and decided to follow. "Dammit, more of them. Get inside quick. I'll go dispatch them"

Dr. Bronze was not going to take chances. He never was good at anything other than doctoring. He could hold a knife, but he never could face a grimm.

While passing he looked back at the man and realized the guard had long gashes down his back from claws. That meant his aura was broken. He was loosing blood fast. He...wouldn't survive without medical help, but before Dr. Bronze could say something the man went running down the street towards the beowolfs.

"We need reinforcements now!"

"…."

"I don't care about policy! Get ships here at least! We have wounded soldiers and civilians!" Lilly was heard yelling into the comm speaker of the tower. Dr. Bronze had never been so happy and terrified to see his wife at the same time.

Lilly was not doing well. She was not a huntress, she was a normal human just like him. She had cuts and scrapes all over her body. The thing that scared him the most was how she was obviously clutching her lower stomach and her breathing was rough, labored.

Labor, oh no. "Lilly!"

She turned to him. "Oh thank the brothers. I need your help. They won't listen to me and my water broke and and" She had a hard time shuffling over to him, "Everything hurts! AHHHH!" She crumpled to the floor.

Dr. Bronze took his coat off and laid it on the ground, laying Lilly on top of it. "Are there more people?" He asked hoping that he could get some help. He could do it alone, but some help would be appreciated.

"They….are….in the back" Lilly said through labored breaths before crying out in pain.

"I'll be right back. Just don't forget to breath." Lilly looked annoyed but started breathing more regularly between the bouts of pain.

"Argus….need to...talk to them..."

"I will, I will, but right now your more important. Don't forget to breath" He ran through the hallways until he came to the backroom. There were some people and children in the backroom, but he managed to convince one of the women in the back to come help him. With her in tow he ran back to his wife.

"Don't worry honey, I've had three kids. I know what I'm doing"

"Thank you" He leaned down towards his wife, "Lilly how are you doing?" She was pale white and her breathing was getting worse. Something was wrong. "Did you remember to breath?"

She gripped his shirt with a surprising amount of force for a woman in her condition. "Tell….me..to breathe...one more time…..and you won't be"

"Mmmmhmm, I heard that sister. Men are useless when it comes to babies." The woman turned to him. "I may not be a doctor, but I have helped plenty of deliveries in this village. You can leave this to me.

"At...las….need to call. Ahhh!"

He couldn't stand to see his wife in such pain, but she was right. He ran into the small room on the side of the hallway Lilly was in when he found her and called up Argus base. "Argus base come in over!"

"Look I already told you" Dr. Bronze heard through static and crackling, "There is nothing we can do without an official command. None has been given, so sorry.

"Screw your command! People are dying! Your men and civilians alike!"

There was a pause on the other end. "How many people did you say are hold up with you?"

Dr. Bronze didn't like the pointless chit-chat but maybe he could use this to his advantage. "There are maybe thrity people here. About half of them are your people, and most of them are wounded! We need evacuation!" Really there were only about five soldiers, and all of them were wounded. The rest were a handful of civilians, mostly children.

There was a pause. The person seemed hesitent when he heard a woman's voice over the speaker. "In compliance with protical Delta-Epsilon 13 stay where you are and you will be taken care of. I promise."

Bronze had worked closely with some of the Argus personel before. He had never heard of that protical, but they said they were going to help. "Thank you! I will tell them. Bless you! Bless you!" The line went dead, but that was fine. The message was sent! Argus was coming to help!

He ran back into the hall to check on his wife. He heard crying and realized there was a baby in his wife's arms.

Lilly looked very tired and her breath was still ragged. She looked up at her husband. "It's a boy. Turns out you were right"

Dr. Bronze smiled. "There goes all your girl names. What do we name him now? Carl?"

Lilly laughed, "Yea, that'll be the day. What about Argus?"

"They are coming to help us, we just need to hold out until they get here. We will make it out of here!"

Lilly smiled again, "I hope they get here fast then. I feel tired" With that Lilly fell asleep, baby snuggled in a small towel in her arms.

The woman civilian came over to him. "She's lost too much blood. She needs help. You sure Argus is coming for us?"

"That's what they said. We need to tell the others" Just now he realized the woman had furry ears poking out the top of her head. The hat she had that covered them was used to help birth the baby, so it was covered in blood.

He ran to the back. The five wounded Atlas soldiers jumped up when he came in but when they recognized him, they sat back down.

Dr. Bronze was eager to share the news. "Guys Argus said they are coming to help us!" There were cheers from the civilians, and the soldiers looked relieved. "They said that we needed to stay put and hold out until they get here"

"What code did they use?" One of the soldiers asked. "It will tell us what to prioritize"

"I think they said Delta-Epsilon 13?"

The soldiers all paled. The one that asked the question hobbled to his feet, using one of the other soldier's shoulder to keep him up. "We need to evacuate. Everybody get ready to move."

Dr. Bronze was confused. "They said to stay put"

"Some of the Atlas codes are hard to understand, but others are really simple Delta-Epsilon 13. DE1D or 'Dead'. They are telling us the town is overrun, so they will wipe it out."

"But the civilians?"

"Are acceptable losses. History is written by the victors. Move out!" The soldiers escorted the civilians out the backdoor. "Come on Doctor!"

"My wife, I have to go get her!"

The man scowled but relented. "Do it fast. We don't have much ti-" Loud sounds of engines cut him off. "Get Down!"

Explosions rocked the building. Dr. Bronze could feel bits of wood and rock cover his back. When he looked back up the wall to the back of the building was partially collapsed and the soldier was nowhere to be seen.

He panicked. "Lilly!" He ran back down the hallway, being jostled by more explosions.

He found his wife and child.

Oh, he did.

-0-

 **Newspaper Report from the battle of Saisei**

 _Horror struck yesterday as the town of Saisei, a prominent trading hub outside of Argus was attacked by a massive horde of grimm. "Atlas was quick to respond to the town's summons due to the increase in grimm activity after the large battle last week", the coordinator for strategic response commented. "Unfortunately we cannot predict all outcomes"_

 _From the reports supplied by Argus command the first few waves of grimm that attacked in the morning of the 13th were wiped out by the soldiers and hunters sent to quell the attacks. Later that afternoon there was a surprise attack by members of the Red Wolves hiding among the village civilians. This caused a mass panic that increased the grimm threat._

" _It breaks our hearts that the enemy would use civilians like that" One of the Argus commands says. "That was a mixed town. They used that fact to strike out against Atlas, with the civilians getting in the middle. They are heartless monsters. Animals. Destroyers of life, and we will strike back for those lost in the town"_

 _The town was burning down, and after Argus scanned the town and found nothing but grimm signals, they knew there was no one left to save._

" _This was an excelent use of Atlas technology. The new scanners are perfect and did their job. Due to these scanners we knew that there wasn't any survivors in the town" an Atlas engineer said. "They kept people from having to risk their lives to save people that were already gone. I weep for those who have lost loved ones._

 _There are some critiques of the scanner results though as two survivors were found. While Atlas and Argus refuse to release who they were, an inside source tells this reporter that one was a baby and a man who was holding the upper half of the body of a woman._

 _Again Atlas and Argus refuse to release who this man is, just that they will not allow anyone to question him as to his information or involvement. This man is supposedly being kept in isolation and is being given psychological care._

 _More facts will surface after the reports full release on…._

-0-

Pain Pain Pain Pain!

Dr. Bronze woke from the nightmare to pain in his back and hips.

He looked around his cell. The chains still clasped firmly to his wrists. It was dark. It was always dark.

He never liked confinement. It reminded him of his past. Of mistakes he made.

The nightmares were the worst though. They plagued him in his weakest moments. Weakened him in his strongest. The sadist part is the nightmare he just had was his favorite. It was the worst moment of his life. The weakest he had ever fallen. Where everything had been taken away from him.

Why was it his favorite? Because every time he had it his waning memory showed him his love again, as if she never left. It gave him the best gift it could.

He would never forgive and he would never forget.

For those civilians. For that woman that helped him. For Carl. For….Lilly….For Saisei.

-0-

 **A/N: Well, while dark you can understand why Dr. Bronze has some hatred for Atlas.**

 **Don't hate me.**

 **Also I love writing for Sherry. She is great. More fallout and misunderstandings in the next chapter. I was going to write more for this chapter, but I usually count a word count above 3000 words to be a full length chapter.**

 **Questions answered in the next chapter: What about Chardonnay? What happened to Yang and Blake? Is Ruby okay with the crazed doctor?**

 **(Also I have been watching the new episodes and while I like their Dr. Polentina, they went with 'helpful scientist'. I went with 'mad genius')**

 **Until next time read and review!**


	10. A Rise and a Fall

**A/N: Hello! Ah some time since last time. I will try to answer some of those burning questions from last time.**

 **There was a guest review that seemed to misunderstand some things about _how_ I do things. I will explain and try not to rant at the bottom (It will be made after the chapter to preserve a true chapter length)**

 **Lets Go!**

A Rise and A Fall

-0-

The old scientist came skirting around the side of the raised tube. "This is the prototype to my greatest masterpiece!" He scratched his head, "Donnie!….Donnie!? Where did I put the other tubes!?"

One of the solid walls opened up randomly. The small boy came through holding what looked like water and some medication. "Here father. Your medications."

Doctor Polentina grabbed the glass of water but not the medicine. "Bah, haven't taken the stuff in years yet you tell me every time you see me to take them. I don't need medication! I need answers!" The older man quickly chugged down the water. "Ah always good to stay hydrated….thats it! Note to self: Figure out a way to absorb water from natural humidity."

"Father"

"Ah Donnie. Glad to see you when did you get here. Who's watching the front!?"

"Father would you like some gummies?"

"Oh yes. Do we have any of the orange left? You know those are my favorite"

"Yes father." Donnie held up the same pills that the doctor just refused. The doctor grabbed them out of his hand and shoved them into his mouth and swallowed them.

"Ah orange, so good." He got a distant look on his face. "Donnie. Calculate the impact velocity of a fire dust round if instead of the normal pressure release valve, we replace it with a magnetic charge valve on the flagship."

Donnie looked up. Looked at Ruby who was standing there very confused about the Doctor's behavior, then back at his father. "Father the velocity would increase as well as the explosion radius. Likelihood of the charge making the dust explode in the chamber seventy-two point nine five percent.

"Set up an appointment for testing! That is much better odds than the last change by at least twenty percent!"

"Encrypted mail sent. Father you are ignoring your guest"

The doctor twisted to look at Ruby. Something in his body popped. He seemed to get mad at his wheelchair, then just stood up and walked over to Ruby. "Ah yes. The girl who knew….knows my daughter."

"Umm. About Penny." Ruby looked sad. Her wound hurt and the walk over here while not too bad took more out of her than she thought it would. Blake must have really got her good. "She fought to the end. She was a great person and she didn't deserve to go out like she did"

The old man smiled. "Just what I wanted to here! I built her to be strong. Keep that thought alive." He pulled a patch out of his front pocket and thwapt it onto Ruby's forehead. "We need just that! I created a new body. I fixed her core, but her body is a mixture of machine _and_ aura. I can't figure out the personality fixtures. Stupid aura"

Ruby felt hope welling up in her. "Wait you can bring Penny back?!"

"Unfortunately no" Ruby deflated. "But you my dear, can" Ruby lite back up. The crazed scientist pointed to the duel small tubes at the side of the room. "Those were what created her. You put her in one side and Penny in the other. The machine takes some of your aura and memories and pushes it into Penny, bringing her to life"

Ruby remembered the talk with Jaune when he was in one of his slumps. He explained what happened to Pyrrha through gasps and tears. Ruby was wary.

Snapping back to reality Doctor Polentina was super close. "You recognize it...hmm that's not good. I told Ironwood to keep it secret! That's it he isn't invited to my lab anymore! Donnie! Put him on the 'kill on sight' list!"

"Sir that list is full"

"What? Who's on there?"

"All the names on the list are under Ironwood"

The doctor grimaced, "Well then cut one of the names out and add this one in!"

"Successfully supplemented sir"

He smiled, "Good! That will show him!" The man scratched his head as if something was annoying him. "Now back to my daughter. You can save her Ruby. I know you don't trust this machine of mine. Don't deny it! I can see it in your eyes." He grabbed Ruby by the arm and pulled her toward the machine, pointing out different items on the machine and how they work.

Ruby pushed him away after a few steps, pain from her wound and too many words to comprehend. "Wait, wait. Stop. Are you saying this thing can bring Penny back?"

"Have I been talking to a robot this entire time!? Open your eyes and see the possibilities, leave the finer details to..." The doctor looked over at the small boy. "Donnie! Why are you here!? Who is watching the front!?"

The boy's eyes dropped from the scolding. "Yes father" The boy walked to the wall going towards the front Ruby had just come through. When he was almost there a small door appeared in the wall just large enough for Donnie to walk through without stopping.

This left Ruby in the large laboratory with the doctor, which now frightened Ruby much more than she expected.

"So you knew my daughter" He sounded somber. Ruby nodded. "Good. I have researched you. Studied you. I am glad she has a genuine friend. I once never thought in terms of friendship. It was always numbers." Doctor Polentina went over towards where Penny laid. "I was told I could never have children. Never really wanted them, but I always wondered what it would be like..." He brushed his hand through her hair before lightly touching her cheek with the back of his hand. "She was...is my greatest creation. Please help bring her back to me."

Ruby saw a man on the verge of tears over his lost daughter. She didn't see someone crazy or someone that had lost some mere tool, but a father. It reminded her of her father's loss so long ago. _He may be crazy, but under all that he has a good heart._

"We will get your daughter back. I promise you that. Anything that I have to do to get her back, I will"

The broken man looked at Ruby. "Thank you!" He looked around like he was confused for a second. "What's happening? When did I get back in the lab?"

 _And there goes the moment._ "You brought me back here to talk about Penny and I just agreed to help you bring her back"

He suddenly looked excited. "You did! Ha! I told Donnie you would. Didn't I Donnie!?"

"You said the opposite sir" Donnie's voice said directly behind Ruby, making her jump. She immediately regretted that decision as pain wracked her body. Donnie noticed, but said nothing as the doctor ran in all directions grabbing different notes and equipment, one included a very long needle. Ruby did not like the look of that needle.

"Umm, so what will I have to do?" Ruby said hesitantly as the doctor was still holding the large dangerous looking medical apparatus.

The doctor smiled, "I need your soul to revive my daughter. Its that simple."

Ruby was even more unsure. "Is it really?"

"Bah! People always try to complicate things that are simple and simplify things that are complicated!"

"Won't I die if you take my soul?"

He waved off the question, "Only a tiny piece. Insignificant to you as one so young, but life-giving to Penny"

Ruby was unsure. She thought of the pain it might cause her. She thought of the fact that this doctor seems nuttier than a banana nut-muffin.

But then she thought of Penny. She may have been an android, but she was more human that some of the people Ruby had fought over the years. Penny genuinely cared about people and the state of the world. Seeing her again would mean so much. A vision of Penny's decapitation went through her mind causing Ruby to frown. Doing this just might make up for the time she has lost. Oh there will be so many stories to tell.

And now she was excited to see her again. Well the decision had been made...again…

With reluctance she agreed as the doctor came closer to her with the large needle. When he was right in front of her he smiled before throwing the needle over his shoulder. Ruby watched as hit the ground and shattered. "Great now all I need you to do is get into the left pod while I load Penny into the right one. The doctor walked back toward Penny while Ruby walked over to the pod. She held her wound. Besides it still hurting a dull constant pain, she was nervous which made her more aware of the wound itself.

She heard the doctor snap, "Oh and one more thing, you need to strip"

Ruby swore she heard wrong, but that didn't stop her face from heating up, "What?"

"In the prototype version for some reason clothing makes test subjects explode. I built the thing and even I can't tell you why. Donnie can help you unclothe"

Ruby looked down to Donnie, who still had this 'who cares about the world' expression. "It will take approximately twenty seconds for you to be completely exposed. Please do not resist."

Ruby reflexively covered herself, her face now beat red. "WHAT!?"

-0-

Chardonnay knew the ride out to her family home would be bumpy the closer they went, but she was so tired. Between paperwork and keeping people in their places she felt her eyes drooping. Easiest way was to opt for a driver so she could get some rest. Turns out being an Atlas superior of a base came with perks. As soon as she got into the backseat she was out.

Chardonnay was awoken by her head slamming into the jeep's door. "You! You will never see the light of day again! You hear me!?" the driver screamed out the window. Seeing Chardonnay scowling in the back of the jeep he started apologizing profusely.

They made it to the house. Chardonnay noticed that Sherry's truck wasn't there so she must have been gone. _Sad I missed a great opportunity_. The house looked normal so Chardonnay told the driver to wait with the Jeep as she took a look around. It looked just like she remembered it. The wooden house packed away in the valley between the mountains, close enough to get to town but far enough away that you had clean air and the sounds of nature.

She opted to look at the barn first, just to make sure Sherry hadn't messed something….when she opened the door she took one look at the family tractor and knew Sherry had been here. It was an old blue tractor with large back wheels and two small front ones. It was made for pulling out stumps and flattening piles of dirt. Sherry had somehow put the wheels on backwards, with the large ones in the front pushing the driver seat up at a forty-five degree angle. Chardonnay didn't even think it would run anymore, but one look beside the tractor where a marinade of parts, including several key components of the engine proved her case.

Chardonnay shook her head, but couldn't help but smile. She could see Sherry in her mind telling her that she did the best she could. That she would keep going until she got it right, all the while making it worse.

She moved from that to the actual house. She thought it would be easy but as she reached out towards the door handle Chardonnay felt a twinge of sadness and fear. The last time she had been on this porch was when she had stormed out, her mother pleading her not to go. She had bleached her hair white and told her mother she was leaving to join the Atlesian military. Her mother had cried and pleaded for her not to go, but she went anyway.

They had made up over the phone, but this was the first time she had been back. Her mother had kept it a secret that Chardonnay left that way. Asti was already at Haven and Sherry was working a second shift at her new job, so no one else knew.

She steeled herself and opened the door. Not much had changed in the furniture. The only difference seemed to be that Sherry had put a new rug down underneath the sofa. Pots and pans that used to be her mothers decorated the floor. More proof that Sherry had taken up residence in the house.

She went down the hall into the bedrooms. Sherry was still living in her own room as seen by the scattered clothes and for some reason papers, while Chardonnay and Asti's shared room laid unopened and untouched. The biggest change was their parents room. Lititia, their mother, had a sore spot for their father. He had left before Sherry was born. They were worried when he didn't return for her birth. Lititia resolved herself when they found out he was dead. Chardonnay remembered she took it hard.

Her father's old clothes were scattered all over the room. It looks like Asti wasn't joking about Sherry finding a man. If she remembered correctly her father was a large statured man, meaning if this guy fit into his old clothes, he must be as well.

Chardonnay still didn't like the idea that Sherry was living with a man. Sherry was an adult and could make her own decisions, but Sherry had always been a little immature, childlike. Chardonnay would find out who this was and do a thorough background check on him. Sherry was only going to have the best of the best! She deserved it! Someone to protect her and keep her safe in the chaos of the world around them.

She started walking back towards the living room. Still she felt another twinge. Jealousy? Why would she be jealous of her sister? Just because she was older and better at most things than her. More successful and with a body men could only dream of, yet Sherry got a man before herself.

A light red crept up her pale skin. _I wonder what all experience Sherry has..._ Chardonnay ungracefully tripped over one of the pots that were on the floor. Thank the brothers for her aura. _Thank the brothers nobody else saw that_.

She was getting up when she noticed a hole in the floor. Her training told her it was a blade hole. Makes sense. Sherry had been home. She was sure if she checked the kitchen there would be small holes and indents everywhere...but this was closer to the living room than the kitchen. Her instincts told me something was wrong about this hole. Different. It wasn't from a kitchen knife, but a sword. What would Sherry be doing with a sword? Chardonnay touched the hole, analyzing it.

She jumped up and ran out of the house slamming the door behind her. Her glorified shoffur saw her haste and saluted her as she approached. "Hello Sir! Are you do-"

"Cut the formalities. The vehicle that ran us off the road, what did it look like?"

The man grimaced. "It was an old red Valean two door truck. I swear to you I will find out who was responsible and throw them into the deepest darkest pit I can find. Also we received a report from the base. A prisoner was just transported from Atlas."

Chardonnay shook her head. "We don't have time for that. That was my sister! She's in trouble!"

"Yes sir! Get in and we'll be off"

Screw that. Chardonnay grabbed the man and threw him into the jeep, jumping into the driver's seat before hitting the gas, flying out of the property.

Chardonnay knew there was always a risk. She was a specialist in the Atlas military. Asti was a top tier huntress that graduated valedictorian of her class with her team. Sherry never wanted to be any more than what she was, so they protected her from danger. But Chardonnay felt it. It was old but powerful.

Malicious aura. A huntsman's aura.

-0-

Yang had been chained to the walls of the bullhead that flew her towards Argus. They hadn't taken off the aura suppressors so she felt weak the entire time, tired. Over time she started feeling a little better, getting used to the new feel of her body.

What they had taken from her was the arm she got from Ironwood. She was once again a weakened cripple. It hurt her. She remembered the looks on her friends faces, the hatred of the Atlas citizens. She didn't see Ruby which was surprising, but she was glad. The last face she wanted to see was a look of disappointment, shock or fear on her sisters face.

They landed inside the Argus base. She remembered the hard time they had getting in here. Those big guards protecting the doors with unflinching dedication certainly did not help.

"Who is on patrol!?" One of her guards yelled out.

A small boy in atlas military garb came running over. "I am sir!"

The guard smirked and chuckled. "So the boy is playing soldier. Well whatever, we don't care. We just want to make it back so we can get drinks." Yang scowled as the guard unlocked the cuffs that locked her arm and legs to the bullhead. In the process he brushed his hand against her chest and legs. "Oops" He said smirking, "didn't mean to do that"

Yang saw red and knew that her eyes had changed. As soon as her arm was free she swung as the guards face. It was a good punch. She pushed all her meager strength into it.

It felt like hitting a brick wall.

The guard smiled as his aura took the blow. He grabbed Yang's arm and the back of her neck before slamming her face into the metal floor of the bullhead. "You all saw it. As soon as I uncuffed the prisoner for transport, she attacked me unprovoked."

"Come on guys" the boy said, "S-she should be respected. She may be a prisoner but she is still a girl"

"Isn't that grand" the guard holding Yang down said.

"A true gentleman" The other said.

The guard brought Yang up and practically threw her at the boy. "Take her then. She's your problem anyway. She's hot I'll give her that but she is a huntress prisoner. Shes attacked people, and I can guarantee you she's killed before" Both guards got back into the bullhead. "Good luck" Yang heard them laughing as the bullhead lifted off.

Yang glared over at her new captor.

"Umm. Well we already got the orders that Ironwood had for you. Though they have not been reviewed by our leader yet." The boy ushered Yang towards one of the gates off the landing field.

"Cordovin that busy?"

"Cordovin isn't in charge anymore. Specialist Chardonnay is in charge, though she is out today to visit family. She is so cool and commanding! Much better than Corodovin. A real specialist.

Yang rolled her eyes. "Great another Atlas elite that I have to deal with. Bet she grew up all comfy under one of the Atlas noble that bought her way into the military."

The boy seemed frustrated. "Did you not hear what I said before! She is here visiting family, not in Atlas! She apparently grew up around Argus. She was originally from Mistral!"

"Bet she's human though"

"She is! But that doesn't have anything to do with it. I know there are some Atlas stereotypes, but we are genuinely here to help people."

Yang couldn't believe this nonsense. What was this guy saying? "I bet you've never been to Atlas before have you"

The boy blushed a little and rubbed the back of his neck. "No but I was hoping that I would some day. I was born and raised in Argus. Here is where I did my training. And here is where I have stayed."

Yang had just about had enough. "Look just take me and lock me up like your supposed to! I am too pissed off to care about some stupid boy that doesn't know about how the world works yet!" Yang hit the corner of the wall with her boot which caused a surprising amount of pain. "And I hate not having aura!"

"Well I am actually older than you but you can't have you aura back until you have been re-evaluated"

That stopped Yang. There was a way of getting her aura back, that made sense. Technically all they would have to do is remove the aura suppressor and she would be good as new. Yang looked down at her arm... _Well I'll be 70% good as new_.

"So how do I get re-evaluated" Yang was surprised at this guy's ability to run his mouth.

The guard thought for a minute. "First you have to show you have regreted whatever action you took. That you have strove to make up for it, and gained the faith back of the one who sentenced you….which would be Ironwood….you might be waiting a while."

Ironwood wasn't the problem in that scenario, though he would be a factor. Yang will never regret what she did. Those councilmen were the worst people she has ever seen, and she has literally seen the face of a dark mistress that can control grimm. This was never going to work. She needed to figure out a new plan and fast.

She was never good at that.

Yang realized as they walked that they were heading towards the outer section of the base. That was odd because if anything she figured they would be going deeper into the base. They passed close to the outer walls of the base, going into a small building that said 'storage acquisition' on the top of it.

Yang felt a tiny voice telling her that she could bolt. Think about it. She may not have aura but this guy was puny. He probably wouldn't put up much of a fight. It kept rising up in her mind as they got to the building, but she kept going, mostly because even if she could overpower this guy what about the next? How would she get the gate open? There was no way.

The small building hadn't seen much use, Yang could tell. The small guard told her to wait in the front alone, which felt so much like a test. I mean come on! How long has this guy been a guard? Even Yang understood that you don't leave prisoners that can run away by themselves with no one to stop you.

"Okay. Your stuff came in just before you got here. You are authorized to see them and confirm that these item are yours. Usually we would also take measurements and pictures. You know height, weight and the lot before throwing you into the dungeon...but you seem to be a special case." The guard put Yang's scroll on the table along with several articles of clothing.

Yang was very suspicious. "How am I special?"

"Normally we would not care about if these are yours, but I am just following the directions in the letter"

"I thought you said it was never approved by your superior? Who was it….Chardonnay?"

"That's right. But in her absence it is still a letter with specified instructions from the head of the military. Really the 'review' is a formality."

There was a bag the young guard produced that he put the clothing into. He handed her the scroll. "This will be tracked...Oh and you don't need this." He took the aura suppressor off, but nothing happened. Yang did not feel the rush of her aura or anything.

"Why isn't my aura coming back!? What's going on!?" Yang yelled. Would she never get it back. What had they done to her that she couldn't use the power of her own soul?

"We are Atlas, the most technologically advanced power on Remnant. Don't you think the cuffs are a bit obvious? Yes, they do work, they are real cuffs, but like I said you are special. They put a chip into you that does the same thing the cuffs do. Its way smaller and way easier to handle."

"So the cuffs were a test?" She knew it! It was too easy. This was all to test her.

"Ehh, more like they had to keep appearances for everyone else."

"Then how do you know about it?"

"It was in the letter" The guard said with a shrug. He got done stuffing the bag with her clothes. "now come with me."

And off they were again. This time though they went to the main gate. He clicked a series of buttons on the wall next to it and the gate doors started to open. He threw the bag out of the gate and urged her forward. Yang was very confused, but whatever.

"Umm does this mean I am free to go?"

"All the letter said was that I should say 'We'll be in touch'" The guard straightened his back trying to deepen his voice to the best Ironwood presentation he could do. "Just don't leave Argus. If you do bad things will happen. The letter was vague, but it sounds like someone is coming to get you.

"Do I have somewhere to go? Money?"

"You have full access to your account through your scroll, so it is whatever you already had, so good luck."

Yang looked at her scroll as the guard shut the gate. She had been on this side of the gate before. Last time she was trying to get in. This time she thought she got out a little too easy. Something was up, and she wasn't sure what it was.

On her scroll she had some missed calls and messages. Mostly from the gang still in Atlas. Did they know she got her scroll back? Doubtful. They probably tried it as a long shot to reach her.

"Gah. Oh bobobo"

Yang looked up at the sudden noise to see a familiar sight looking back at her. Saphron arc and little Adrian. Adrian was making noises mixed with shrieks that Yang swore had to be a semblance of some kind.

"Hello Yang. Good to see you again. Jaune Jaune said you would be here, but wasn't sure if you were staying at the base or not, but he wanted me to go to the base and ask about you. Guess I don't have to anymore."

Yang scratched the top of her head with her arm. "Yea I am still confused. This was way too easy...though a guard did get handsy with me"

Saphron looked worried. "Are you okay? They didn't hurt you did they?"

"Besides my pride, no" Yang said deflating. Seriously she knew she had a smoking hot body. Why is it that idiots and molesters were the only guys she interacted with. Was there not one gentleman left in Remnant?

"Well lets get you back to my place. Get you settled down. They've been working Terra so much to try to fix systems after the attack that I haven't seem her in days. It would be good to have some company."

Yang looked around taking in the familiar sights of Argus as they headed back to the house. Something about the town felt...eerie? There were several people that she saw. The odd part was that last time she was here the people they encountered were mostly human. Everyone she saw on the street had prominent ears or tails. They wore them without cover ups. Some even had colors specifically around them to make them stand out. The groups of faunus whispered to each other as Yang and Saphron passed by. When Yang looked back at them they were gone.

"I don't want to sound racist, but last time I was here there weren't this many faunus around."

"You are correct" Saphron said with a smile. "I like the new diversity, some of the faunus are so nice. Isn't that right Adrian"

"Ga bo Boo"

"There has been a faunus guru that has been doing radio interviews and meditative sessions. He is really good. I think that is why the faunus population has risen so much." She frowned, "But the people here don't like it. Most humans that are bigots here have been spouting that its the end times. That faunus are taking over!"

There will always be those people Yang guessed. If only they could look past their own insecurities and give faunus a chance, they might not feel so worried.

"Here we are. Home sweet home. Stay as long as you need to. Any friend of Jaunes is a friend of mine"

Saphron's scroll started going off. Right after they got inside. She picked it up promptly. Her face grew more agitated and stressed before agreeing to something and hanging up.

"So this is a bit aqward but would you mid looking after Adrian for a while? I am being called back into my new job as a nurses assistant, at least until I get my license."

Yang smiled. She had taken care of Ruby from a young age. Not this young, but close enough. How hard could it be? "Do not worry. I got this. Go to work, its the least I can do to help you out"

"Thank you. I swear I will be back as soon as I can! Like a couple hours max" She frantically showed Yang where the basic baby supplies were kept before handing Adrian off to her. Yang supported Adrian with her one arm, using the stump of her other arm to balance him. "Be careful he can be a handful"

"I said not to worry. Even I can last a little while."

With that Saphron left and Yang was alone with a baby just learning to walk. "Okay baby", she said setting him down, "Do your worst"

He promptly looked around and not seeing his mother anymore, started wailing.

This was going to be interesting

-0-

One cat faunus woke up in a cell that was small with only one sheet and a bucket on the far side. The cell was made of cold concrete. Blake felt weak. She felt like she had no aura left. She was covered in a white and black shirt and pants that felt paper-thin and did nothing to stop her from shivering.

She heard screams coming from down the dark hallway that her cell was a part of. Screams to stop, that they would tell them everything they wanted, followed by wails and sounds of electric dust going off.

"Well well well." A guard said walking by, "looks like we've got a new faunus to play with boys" Two more guards rounded the corner.

"Big faunus thinks they can come up to Atlas and cause trouble."

"I think she needs to be taught about how things work around here"

The first one smirked as he unlocked her cage. The one barrier that separated them from her now shattered. He punched her in the head, which felt like getting hit with Nora's hammer. It knocked her to the ground.

The guard kicked her in the stomach with his boot while the other two smirked. "Welcome to your new home. Welcome to Atlas"

Blake never felt so helpless.

-0-

 **A/N: This is part 1 of probably 3 parts. Mostly because I don't want this thing to be huge like the last chapter I wrote. That one was a dusey.**

 **This was supposed to be a rant, but I will summarize things into bullet points:**

 **1\. I don't care particularly about negative comments unless its constructive criticism**

 **2\. Ruby will NOT have a pairing in this fic**

 **3\. I prefer Blacksun over Bumblebee, but I use a Bumblebee dynamic because it gives more depth to their interactions (think what you want)**

 **4\. I am not a fan of WhiteRose**


	11. A Plan in the Darkness

**A/N: Hello. Not much to say about current events. Still working even amid a pandemic. Bills have to get paid.**

The Plan in the Darkness

-0-

Sherry finally stopped her truck from going way over the speed limit when she slammed her foot on the brake in the middle of the street next to a building that Adam could only assume to be the hospital.

Sherry slowly turned into the parking lot. She was still figiting. Oh she had never been so embarrassed! I mean she had messed up before in front of people sure, but for the guard to say that in front of Adam! And Asti already embarrassed her when she showed up, though at least that was only her when they had _that_ awkward conversation.

But now Adam was involved. He seemed like a brick wall, like it hadn't even phased him, but had it? She was never good at reading men. This is when she needed the powers of her sisters. Not their huntress powers, but their ability to read people.

"So are we going inside?" The question snapped Sherry out of her daze.

"Y-yes that is why we came anyway. Be careful!" Sherry yelled as she realized right as she answered Adam had already swung open the truck door, fully intending to get out and walk by himself.

Sherry hurried over to Adams side. "Carefully". Adam put his good leg down. It seemed fine. Adam put his other leg down, which he could now feel down to his ankle normally, but his foot still felt a little numb. When he put pressure on it, it wasn't ready for it. He felt Sherry grip him and keep him from falling forward. "I said carefully" She said with a smile, "Don't force it. I'm here to support you"

Adam was confused about Sherry now. She has helped him. But she also put this ballcap on him to hide his faunus features, something he always took pride in. She didn't seem biased or racist at all, but she stumbled over every task with the grace of an Atlesian paladin. It brought a light smile to his face. That was a funny thought.

"Umm. Is there something on my face?" Adam came out of his brief inner thoughts. Using the truck to stand up and look at Sherry who was supporting his right side.

"No? Why?" He took off the ballcap that hid his horns, making sure it didn't take off the patch covering his SDC scar. Sherry didn't seem worried about it anymore. She was squirming while holding him up.

"You were staring at me and smiling" She finally said looking away as they walked towards the building. "It... made me a little self-conscious" Some faunus that were talking outside the doors to the clinic looked at him before whispering to each other and going down the street.

It distracted Adam but Sherry pouted thinking he wasn't going to respond to her. This girl. Did everything have to be about her? "I was just having a happy thought, nothing more."

As they went through the doors to the clinic he felt her shift her weight, giving less support to his side, but made it look more like she was walking next to him than supporting him.

There was nobody in the front office when they entered which confused both of them, but for different reasons. Adam wondered why you wouldn't at least post a guard. He knew this was inside a city so there was less likely of a chance, but if there was an attack the warning would save lives.

Sherry pushed him towards the door into the main patient hall. There weren't as many people there as normal, meaning it had been a good week for people. The head nurse was pushing around Doctor Carl Bronze in a wheelchair, much to his protest.

"Really I'm fine. Stop! I can push myself around, and yes I understand I have to let my body heal. I am a doctor you know" The doctor looked up to see Sherry walking through the door with Adam next to her. "Ah, Sherry! I wasn't expecting you. What can I do for you?"

Sherry set Adam down on one of the empty medical beds. "He has been having pain spasms, and he said he couldn't feel his leg after one of them."

Adam was going to speak up about his own body but he was cut off by the doctor.

"Hmm. That is troubling. Nurse!" The head nurse came up beside the doctor.

"Vaut do you need?" She said staring Adam down.

"Bring him into the back rooms. We need to run some tests." He looked over at Sherry. "I'm sorry but you can't come back there with us. I will need you to wait out here until we get back.

Sherry looked concerned, "But he needs help to walk on his bad leg"

"I can do it myself" Adam grunted out, tired of being talked about without being talked to

"No you won't!" Both Sherry and the doctor said at the same time.

"I assure you Nancy can handle it. Right Nancy?"

The large woman grabbed Adam with one hand, picking him up and holding him in the air. "Yes. He vill be fine, but I vill need to call in people to take my place if I am going to help you vith this one"

"Call in however many people you need. I'll worry about schedules and pay later. We have enough from helping those soldiers anyway" the doctor waved off Nancy, wheeling himself towards the back door. "I'll be waiting in room 402"

Nancy told one of the other nurses to call some people in. Adam was still held up by one of her arms above her head by the back of his shirt. Adam for all he had experienced was practically in shock that he could be held off the ground like this. Upon seeing his face of bewilderment Sherry had to stifle a laugh.

Adam disappeared with the nurse into the backroom

-0-

This was the most uncomfortable Ruby had ever felt in her life. She was in the 'side room', basically a broom closet, completely naked waiting for the doctor to finish hooking up the machine. She felt cold. Her feet on the tiled floor and not having her cloak around her.

The door to the closet opened. Immediately Ruby covered herself and hid in the corner. Donnie came inside. "Ruby Rose it is time….Why are you in the corner?"

Ruby was red. Bright red, "Umm I know you don't care but most girls don't like to be seen naked by guys...or girls...or anyone!"

Donnie shifted his head in confusion. "I have already scanned you. I know everything physically about you"

"But its embarrassing!"

Donnie shook his head. "Either way it is time. It is just me and father here. We do not care about your body.

Ruby took her time but was finally able to stand up. She still covered herself, but she was able to walk to Donnie.

Donnie seemed to stare, which did nothing for Ruby's embarrassment. Instead of where Ruby thought most guys would stare Donnie was most curious with her stomach, where the large scar from the incident with Blake was still prominent and red.

"Are you hurt?" Donnie asked catching Ruby off guard.

"Donnie! Where is that girl?! I would like my daughter revived tonight if possible!" Ruby heard the doctor yell from across the room.

It distracted the boy. "She is ready father!"

"Good! Women always taking to long to get dressed! Or undressed! And makeup, don't get me started on makeup!"

Ruby felt uneasy as Donnie waved her out of the closet towards the now beeping machine. Penny had been put inside the right pod meaning that Ruby would pass her as she walked towards the other. Penny had several wires connected to her. Some Ruby understood. Others were unknown to her. "You'll be back soon, I promise"

Ruby looked over to the doctor who was behind a control panel of sorts, smiling and staring at her. Ruby instinctively covered herself again and turned away from the doctor.

"Psssh. Girl if I wanted someone for their body I would have asked your sister, not you. Now time to get into the pod so I can use you for your body and soul."

Ruby thought that was really rude, but complied. He may be crazy, but she had no doubt this would bring Penny back. She wasn't sure how but she could feel it. In her heart, in her bones, in her soul.

The pod closed when she got into it. Several lights started flashing around her. A speaker in the pod rang out with the doctor's voice. "Okay, you ca hear us but we cannot hear you. Nod your head if you understand."

Ruby nodded.

"Good. I am going to start the machine. Please keep your hands and feet inside the pod at all times. Also keep hold of the memories you have of my daughter. Keep her in your thoughts. If not this might really hurt."

Wait what? Did he just say this was going to. Lights flared and pain racked throughout Ruby's body. She couldn't stop herself from screaming.

"Donnie why is she screaming? It shouldn't hurt that much. It is only taking a small amount of her aura."

Donnie looked lazily at his father, "Sir did you know that Ruby Rose came in very hurt. When I scanned her originally she only had twenty percent aura left. Right now she is at thirty-five percent"

The doctor threw up his hands. "Well that doesn't make sense! When I took her from the hospital she seemed okay. You just can't trust people anymore"

Donnie shook his head. "Sir did you know that sometimes you yourself are incredibly unobservant?"

"I know right! I thought I was better than this….oh well too late now." He shrugged his shoulders. "It won't kill her. It'll just put her through unimaginable pain as a piece of her soul is pulled away….might reopen her wound as well"

"Father you are a demon"

The crazed doctor smiled. "but if it is successful this war will be changed forever. With my new modifications to Penny's code, she will be a killing machine. What are the odds of success?"

Donnie sat still for a moment. "With her readings it is leveled out at twenty percent"

"Ha! We got this in the bag!" He pushed a button to start the transfer of the now stored aura in the machine.

A glow filled both pods. Ruby stopped screaming. Doctor Polentina smiled and started laughing as the machine started whirling down. "These readings! They are perfect, no better than perfect!"

Ruby's pod opened. Ruby was passed out, the gash in her stomach was bleeding. "Donnie take care of her. She needs medical and rest. She will wake up...probably. I am going to say hello to my daughter"

"Yes sir" Donnie said sleepily. Truly this day had taken much out of him. He needed to recharge. But first he needed to make sure this girl lived. If not Donnie was sure nothing but trouble would come. That meant more work.

-0-

She cracked open her eyes. At least she swore she did. Everything was dark, too dark to see. She knew she was alone, the only noise coming from a constant drip drop of water out of a leaky pipe.

Blake tried to move. Everything hurt. She felt powerless, but more stable if that makes sense. Before where it felt like she was sluggish to move it now felt like she could, just that she didn't want to. She shut her eyes again. She didn't want to be here. She went back to the days that were her favorite that she didn't even know was her favorite at the time. Back in Beacon. Back to those peaceful days before the craziness started. Back when she was with her team. Her friends. Her family.

A flash of light and a screeching of rusty hinges being used woke her from her daze. She could tell time had passed. She didn't know how long, then again it was hard to tell time when you were in perpetual darkness.

"She's in this one" a male voice said. A light was shown over her blinding Blake for a second before going to her cell door. "Damn they did a number on her"

"What do you expect in this place? She's a faunus in jail in Atlas. We're lucky they didn't just kill her and call it an accident" said a hushed but clearly female voice. "Didn't you ever have it rough?"

"Of course I did Harriet but it was easy early on to hide my tail. Once I got into the military they were paying more respects to the uniform than the person, so it was easier. But come on who doesn't love me and...hey don't roll your eyes!"

Blake heard a smack. "And don't blind me you idiot. I'm used to fighting with my fists, not picking locks!"

Blake heard a chuckle before a series of clicks and more groaning from the Atlesian steel. "Elm would be so proud of that statement"

"Tell her and not even Clover will be able to save you"

Blake was curious about these two, but she needed more information. It didn't help that even from just breathing she felt winces of pain. She tried to stay calm. The two walked into her cell. They stopped in front of her.

"We know your awake" Blake didn't move. They could be bluffing. "Seriously, every time we speak your ears twitch and move. Get up"

Well then. For not the first time in her life, she wished she wasn't born with these ears. Blake opened her eyes again. "What do you want?" Her voice came out raspy and weak. She looked between the two in the darkness. One was a faunus while the other was a human. They wore Atlesian uniforms known for Specialists.

"First things first. We are getting you out of this hell-hole. What do you say to that?" The woman Harriet said while smiling. She pointed to the faunus man. "This is Marrow and I am Harriet. We are two of the Ace ops, one of Atlas's best huntsmen team."

"I can barely move. How am I supposed to get out?" Blake asked more out of curiosity than despair.

Marrow brought out a small device and put it to Blake's neck. "This will only hurt for a second"

Blake squirmed for a second. Pain shot through her body from her movement. Something jolted through her when Marrow put the device to her neck. It hurt. Electricity flowed through her. So they were here to torture her? Give her hope before tearing it away? Why should Blake expect any different.

Harriet smacked Marrow in the back of the head. "What are you thinking!? No warning to her!? We could have done that at any time! Why now?!"

"I thought it would help her trust us!"

Harriot rubbed her forehead. "Yes, putting her through pain after a night of torture when she doesn't trust us. Why wouldn't that work?" She said sarcastically.

Blake was indifferent before she felt something flow through her. She felt good. Her wounds started to hurt less and her mind that was fuzzy became clearer. Her aura was back! It felt like she was finally herself again. Everything still hurt, but it hurt less. Debilitating pains turned into wincing pains, which she could deal with. She smiled at the grateful warmth.

"See, she's fine now" Marrow said with a smile. Marrow went to grab her and Blake scooted back towards the wall when he did. Marrow looked with sympathy and pitty, bringing his hand back down.

"Marrow, go make sure we are still clear" Marrow looked at Harriot like she was crazy, but a strong frown and a flick of her eyes to Blake made Marrow understand.

"I'll be at the front gate waiting for you two" He looked back towards Blake, "We are here to help you. Trust us a little and we will get you back to your partner"

Blake wasn't sure if she wanted that right now. How do you explain to your friend that you stabbed their sister thinking she was Adam coming after you? Expecially since Yang was the one who helped her...dispose of Adam. Seeing he wasn't going to get a response Marrow left.

Blake was alone with Harriot. Harriot moved closer to Blake with the same look of pity. "I know you aren't fond of Atlesians right now, but let me help you." Blake still didn't trust them, but they had given her back her aura somehow. Even if she didn't trust her, Blake was sure they were here to help.

"Can you get up?" Blake nodded her head and tried to stand, using the back wall for support.

Blake understood why she was so woozy and in pain when she leaned back against the wall. Her clothing was tattered and big bruises could be seen on her exposed stomach, dried blood mixing into the black of her pants.

Harriot looked concerned when she realized there was blood on her pants. "I know they hurt you, but did they _Hurt_ you?"

Blake understood instantly what she was asking. She shook her head. "They spared me from that" Blake croaked out, mouth dry. "They just kept kicking…." Blake took one of her hands and put it over her stomach. She could tell there was some bleeding and everything was bruised, so she pushed her aura to focus on fixing her insides first.

Harriot came forward slowly, making sure Blake knew she meant no harm. "Good, it they had done that I would kill them myself. They _are_ human scum, no matter what anyone else says." Harriot wrapped Blake in a light hug. "You're safe now"

Blake wanted to cry. She could feel the tears in her eyes, but this wasn't the place for it. "Just, get me out of here"

Harriot smiled, "Of course" Blake was larger than Harriot, but it didn't stop Harriot from picking Blake up with her gauntlets.

-0-

They had given Blake to a doctor to look her over. The doctor was a huntress specialist that had taken care of the bigger parts of Blake's wounds. They gave her some aura stimulants so that her aura could take care of the rest. Blake thought that they would let her rest. She settled down when Harriot came back into the office. There were a quick few words before Harriot picked Blake up, bringing her somewhere.

They went through some hallways until she stopped next to a corner and put Blake on her feet. "Where is this?"

"We are in Atlas military headquarters. I need you to meet with someone...the person that sent Marrow and I to help you, as well as the rest of our team. I thought you might want to look strong"

Blake stood up straight. It still hurt. It was way better than two hours ago though, back when she was in that cell."Thank you" It was the little things.

"Follow me then" Harriot rounded the corner towards a large door that was surrounded by people in Atlesian uniforms. Each stood out to Blake in different ways. Marrow was there talking to a large girl holding a hammer that reminded Blake of Nora and a pale man that stood next to her.

A man came up to Blake when she got close, the others stopping like they were awaiting orders. "Hello, my name is Clover and I lead the Ace-ops. I hope that Marrow treated you right?"

"Why are you only questioning me and not Harriot!?" Marrow questioned with dramatic flare.

"This is why" Harroit sighed while gesturing towards Marrow who was still posing.

Blake chuckled at the interplay between the team. It reminded her of better times. Blake remembered when her team would get into trouble and mess with each other. Her team… Her chuckle died in her throat. Suspicion came back into her mind. "He was fine. What did you want with me?"

Clover sighed. "Straight to the point". He smiled, "That's just what we need" He went to the door and knocked in a sequence. After a second Blake heard the shuffling of papers behind the door. Another series of knocks from inside the room. Clover opened the door gesturing to head inside.

Blake stepped closer. She knew they helped her so they must want something. She never liked the old adage that curiosity killed the cat. It never helped that she liked to know things. She could feel her ears twitch as she stepped into the dark room.

A couple of small candles on a desk lit up one of the people she wished she could never see again.

"Hello Miss Belladonna" General Ironwood said staring into her soul. "Please come in"

Blake narrowed her eyes but stepped forward. She knew she couldn't take him in a fight, especially without her weapon, but she had learned a couple things from Yang. She clenched her fist while seeing weak points in the room. Windows, a way to escape? A pole with the Atlesian flag, a potential weapon? Millions of scenarios pushed into her mind.

"I wouldn't if I were you. I would hate to kill one of my sister's teammates" Winter Schnee said stepping out of the darkness next to the bookshelf to Blakes right. Winter had her hand on her saber. She was watching Blake carefully.

Ironwood sighed, "Winter stop being so tense. We need her help remember?"

"Yes sir!"

Ironwood sighed again and scratched his ever-increasing beard. "Look, there was a reason you were taken into custody. It wasn't because you are a faunus."

Blake didn't believe him. He might not be Jacuse Schnee, but she knew that Ironwood and him were friends. This was a trap somehow. Blake looked from the stoic Winter that was keeping an ever watchful eye on her before looking back towards Ironwood. "What do you want?"

"Like I said, I need your help….with the White Fang" Ironwood put his hand underneath his desk. Blake tensed waiting for an attack. Ironwood pulled out a weapon and set it down on his desk. "Your weapon was broken when you got here. It has been remade and upgraded a little, for the coming battle"

"Why me? What do I have to do with all this?" Blake said her eyes never leaving the weapon she knew. If it came down to it, she may have to risk it for her weapon. It was better than nothing.

Ironwood growled, "We have no time for games. I know your family. I know you are White Fang. I know that you've fought for them-"

Blake was about to bolt. She didn't know what they did in Atlas to White Fang members but if what she was put through earlier was just for being a faunus, she did NOT want to know what the upgrade in status would give her.

"-But I also know that you have changed since then and have fought back against them ever since. I need that. Someone who knows how the White Fang works inside and out. Someone who I can trust has the best interest of the innocents of the world."

Blake was unsure. It seemed to convenient. "How do I know I can trust you? You put me in jail. I was beaten by my guards. How do I know this isn't some sick jo-"

Ironwood set down Yang's arm on the desk next to her weapon with another bracelet Blake recognized as the second half of Yang's weapon. "This is how. This is a black-ops mission. I may have more power now that I hold three seats, but the people are already in turmoil. There is a council seat that will be up for grabs soon and I have to worry about increasing grimm attacks against Atlas."

Blake was confused "I don't understand. Are the White Fang here in Atlas?"

Ironwood blew out a long breath. "Probably, but we may have a location of a White Fang stronghold near Argus, which is why we sent Yang there. She doesn't know yet, that why we are sending you. Officially you two are banished from Atlas and are being deposited back where you came from. Unofficially, well you already know what I want"

"You want me to help you find them. Root them out"

"Basically yes" Clover said coming in behind her, shutting the door behind him. "We will be accompanying you to...deal with them when you find them."

"What if I don't want to do it?"

Ironwood smiled, "Your ears betray you" Blake pushed her ears down, not realizing until he said something that they were standing straight up and twitched every time he spoke. "I do have more information about who is leading them that will be of particular interest."

Blake couldn't think of any leaders she remembered that would excite her in Mistral in particular.

"Adam Taurus"

Blake's eyes went wide. "That's not possible!" She shouted only to be hushed by Ironwood.

"I assure you we have accurate information on this. Our contacts had confirmed it before they went dark. So...what do you say?"

-0-

The door closed after Blake left the room, leaving Ironwood with Winter and Clover. Blake had taken the mission, along with her weapon and Yang's arm.

"Sir, I have the utmost faith in your plans, but should we trust her?" Clover asked.

"Yes and no. She will root out the White Fang for us but I am not going to let a former member have free reign in a black-ops mission" Ironwood tapped the desk, "Watch her carefully. If she does anything out of line, deal with her"

"Yes sir! When do we leave?"

"In one hour. Good hunting and brothers be with you"

Clover nodded and left. As soon as he left Ironwood slumped back in his seat. He grabbed a bottle of scotch from his lower drawer and forgoing a glass, took a long drink before putting it back.

"Sir" Winter said moving toward the desk.

Ironwood looked up from his laid back position. "Winter. I had forgotten that you were here. What do you need?"

"Sir. What about the guards?"

"We already discussed this. You will take care of them along with team Juniper, your sister and her partner tomorrow in Mantle. There needs to be a show of support for the community. Showing that we still police our own will do that. We must be heavy handed."

"Yes sir, but..."

"Is there something else on your mind Winter? Speak freely"

"Why did you say Adam was reported as the leader of these White Fang? We have no evidence of that."

Ironwood shrugged, "Did you see her reaction when he was mentioned. She obviously has a bond with him, and if our research is correct she was more than just his subordinate. It will motivate her"

"I still feel that we should tell Qrow about this. Are you sure we need to keep him in the dark?"

Ironwood grimaced, "He would go straight to Ozpin. He wouldn't approve and I have no patience for games anymore. There must be action. We must win! Even if it costs us."

"Yes sir. Do we at least know where he is?"

Ironwood full out laughed before pulling the bottle of booze back out of his drawer and setting it on the desk. "Just check out the nearest bars. You are dismissed Winter" Ironwood shut his eyes and leaned back again. Bringing the bottle to his mouth.

"But...sir"

"I said you are dismissed!"

"Yes sir!" With that Winter spun on her feet and walked out of the office.

"Brothers help us all"

-0-

A mouse faunus hurried through the halls of the complex they had constructed out of an old Great War shelter. He crashed through the door into what looked like a throne room except on the other side surrounded by guards was a bed instead of a throne, veils of silk around the bed hiding someone inside.

"Speak!" One of the guards said forcefully. "You said you had pertinent information for our lady"

"Yes!" The mouse faunus said with a voice that sounded excited more than scared. "I saw! I saw! We thought he to be gone but no. No no no!"

"Who did you see! Speak clearly, we have no time for your riddles!" The guard demanded.

The mouse faunus started dancing. "The one man my lady had her eye on the most! Adam Taurus is close. Yes! Hehehe. In Argus!"

The guard was about to tell him off when a shuffling was heard from the bed. A strong voice came out from behind the veil. It was obviously female, but it exuded strength and wisdom. "Are you sure?" The guards all dropped to their knees as the veil parted.

On the bed sat a beautiful woman with long black hair. Two white fox ears stood prominently up on her head. Even though she was in bed she was fully dressed in old boiled leather armor. "Yes my lady, I am! He was with a human woman going into one of the local clinics. I think he is hurt"

The lady stood up in front of the bed. Several bones in her body audibly popped like they hadn't moved in a very long time. "Good. Very good. Find a way to bring him to me. I think he will be a good addition to our cause if his reputation is correct."

"Yes my lady. I will try."

"You will not! You will succeed or you will find yourself as one of the sacrifices to our cause. Understood!" She spoke not with spite or haste but slowly. She drove in the only option he had.

The mouse squeaked when the reality hit him. "Yes, my lady. For you…..anything."

She smiled. It was beautiful. Her body was a mix of deadly and sweet. Lilith curves and murderous intent. "Good. Don't keep me waiting. I have been waiting for too long"

The mouse bowed and scurried out, intent on making his lady's will reality.

Long live the Red Wolves! The true seekers of retribution for faunus.

Long live the Red Queen! Her cunning and beauty inspires us all.

Long live the Butcher!

-0-

 **A/N: That's a wrap. I need to try to keep things more consistent time wise. It is hard, but I am trying.**

 **I am thinking of doing one more chapter of this then do some Simple Soul. What do you think?**

 **Read and Review. Comments welcome!**


	12. Waves

**A/N: Hello. Thank you all for the support you are giving me. I never thought that my stories were that good. Thank you.**

 **This story is close to it's climax. Adam will be facing his past, along with others. And what's going on in Atlas to change it for the better?**

 **Ahh. It will be glorious!**

 **-0-**

Waves

Saphron pushed into the clinic breathing hard. She never thought that she would want a vehicle but now was a different story. She didn't really travel outside Argus what with the grimm and all so she thought it was fine to walk wherever she needed to go. Screw that noise. Next time she actually _sees_ Terra it will be priority number one.

The nurses seemed to be running in all different directions, caring for the patients as they went. A bruise here, a broken bone here. One nurse who was trying to write down numbers from different patients dropped her clipboard on the floor, tripped on it and ended up on the floor.

Saphron got out of her stupor to help the nurse up. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Thank you, yes. With Nancy occupied and Doctor Bronze not here, people become babies. It doesn't help that Nancy is relentless. I don't think this place would run without her."

That was high praise for Nancy but Saphron was more unsure about what she could do to help. "Well, I was called in. I don't know how to do much but I'm probably better than nothing at least. How can I help?"

Saphron held out her hand with a smile on her face. The nurse smiled back. "How good are you with numbers?"

-0-

Adam sat on a medical bed in a back private room. The entire clinic smelt like anesthetic. It was worse in this cramped room. "What do you mean inevitable? I should have realized I wouldn't get any help from a human!" Adam said trying to get up only to be held down by Nancy.

"Listen! Both my father and I suspected something like this would happen, but we thought it would take years or even decades for problems to arise." Carl Bronze scratched his head, "This...this was not expected"

Adam sneered. "So I have no choice!?"

"You always have a choice. That wound in your chest is finally starting to heal. Whoever stabbed you is stubborn because their aura fought yours the entire way" Adam agreed with the doctor on one point. Blake was stubborn. She was the pain in his body, his soul. Apparently more physically now more than fictitiously.

"But that brings up the problem with your aura" He put up several charts on a small lit screen that showed different pictures of Adam's chest wound. "I don't know whether you were a huntsman, warrior, soldier for hire...whatever. All I know is that you were taught to have your aura heal your wounds"

Adam felt like rolling his eyes. It was aura 101 all over again. "Of course it heals your wounds! That's basic aura manipulation." Adam went to concentrate on his aura. As soon as he did, pain shot through his body, emanating from the wound Blake gave him.

"NO!" Carl Bronze signaled Nancy who punched Adam in the face. "Do you want permanent damage!? I just got done explaining this! Every time you use your aura it causes a feedback loop to quickly heal your body." The doctor looked at Adam. The man may have been bad in the past, but her was a patient now. Even though the world may have congratulate him on getting rid of a large threat, all Carl saw was a broken man, with a broken body. "Your body isn't healing you anymore, its hurting you"

Adam wanted to retaliate but when Nancy had punched him, even though it hurt, the pain he felt lessened when he lost concentration on his aura. Now he could feel the weight of what the doctor was saying, while also not feeling something else. His feet were numb. It wasn't like his aura burst back at the house, but it was still telling. "How long do I have?"

The doctor pondered and shook his head. "I may be a doctor, but humans are complex. That wound should have killed you outright. Right now I would call you lucky to be alive. How much time you have left before you can't use your aura anymore…." The doctor shook his head.

Adam stood back up, grunting as his weight pushed down on dead feet. As he pressed down his left foot felt like it had pins and needles and soon was back to normal. His right foot seemed the more stubborn of the two, keeping his weight but still feeling slightly numb. Slightly disconnected.

"You chhav been through many harships. You need to take kare yourself" Nancy said helping him stay up. Adam glared at her but only saw a caring look.

Adam looked at his situation. Bleak, that was normal. The problem was usually it didn't matter if he got out on top because in time he would get what he wanted.

This time though? He lost Blake. Almost died. Got indebted to several humans. Sherry….. Things were bad because for the first time since his youth he felt something he swore he would never feel again. Vulnerability.

"Listen Adam" The doctor said slowly. "You can't use your aura anymore. The more you use it, the more your body will try to heal what isn't hurt. Its trying to fuse bones, restitch muscles, reactivate electrical pathways. If you continue you will loose everything below your wound."

"What do you mean loose?"

The doctor knocked on his wheelchair. "You'll be stuck in one of these"

Adam wasn't going to hear it. His own worst enemy was his aura? Go figure. Adam stumbled out of the small room, throwing open the door. He was surprised that neither the doctor nor Nancy stopped him from leaving.

He got back to the main room. The nurses were moving around but seemed to have things under control. He looked around form Sherry, but couldn't find her.

He grabbed a nurse that was writing numbers down that were told to her by another nurse. It startled her. "Where is Sherry?"

The nurse obviously did not like being manhandled by a random patient. She frowned but with a squeeze answered, "She wanted some fresh air. She said she was going outside for a bit." Adam pushed the girl out of the way. "Wait! What about your head?"

In all the details he forgot that he had bandages around his head covering his left eye and scar. "Its fine, leave me alone!" he said just a little too forcefully before pushing through the nurses and out the front door.

He looked around again. It was pitch black outside but his faunus senses gave him some leway. His senses were never as good as Blakes, but he could still see better than a normal human. Sherry wasn't there. He looked to where they parked the truck. It was still there, so Sherry had to be at the clinic.

A nagging on his senses told him something was wrong. His body may have betrayed him, but he still trusted his senses. They were finely honed after years of training and battles. Adam turned towards the small group of people that moved out from an alleyway. "Hello Adam"

"What do you want?" Adam was not in the mood. He was still trying to deal with his emotions. The new information needed to sink in.

A squeaking voice came from underneath a dark hood. "It is not what we want, but what are lady can provide for you" The man Adam expected to be human took his hood down revealing overgrown teeth and tiny ears. "Are cause will be your hands. Our lady all the support you'll need"

"Don't want to hear it" Adam groaned. Religious fanatics, great. After dealing with Cinder and her team, he didn't seem keen on trying again. He kept a look out for Sherry. Maybe she had gone to get something to eat or drink? Not like she didn't know where places would be. He looked over, noticing that the faunus was still their, flanked by six lackeys. Wait six? There was only two before.

"The faunus need you. The White Fang-"

"Betrayed me when I needed them most. Left me to my own when together we could have changed the world. Cost me the only love I ever had!" Adam spouted off. Each accusation driving more hate into his thoughts. He would have made the humans pay. Blake would be safe and not betray him.

The mouse chuckled and got closer to Adam, his posse following him step by step. A quick grabbing of Adam's weapon stopped their advance. "The White Fang needed to be destroyed. It wasn't the true organization. A Parody at best. A retelling of what our lady started long long ago"

"Back off. I'm still not interested in you or your 'lady'. Scurry along before I introduce you to Wilt." With that Adam hoped they would leave, but they stayed still.

"I think you are coming with us Adam. Our lady can give you what you've lost." The mouse had a little smirk, clearly amused with something.

"Try me. I could take you all on at the same time without breaking a sweat" Adam threatened. There was no one around. The streets were dark and quiet. A little too quiet for a city this size, especially for this inner city area. Where was the night life? No homeless? Not even any random passerby?

"Oh no." The mouse squeaked. "We would not harm you. The lady wants you. But we have someone for you. Your pet was all alone, so we gave her a home"

Before the mouse faunus could say anymore he found himself on the pavement. He screamed. The people that were crowded behind him backed up noticing their leader went down. Adam was next to him, sword drawn. "Who?"

"The human girl that was with you"

Adam put the tip of his sword underneath the man's chin. "Choose your next words very carefully"

"We wanted to help you. She was making you weak. Together we faunus will rule right? You can keep her if you want to. I'm sure our lady won't mind. But but but, she is with our lady now so you w-will have to go to her to get her back….please don't hurt me"

Adam seemed to pause for a moment. He took the sword out from under the mouse's chin. He grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, dragging him up off the ground completely. He sheathed his sword. The mouse faunus seemed relieved. "Wrong answer"

Adam punched him in the face. And again. And again. And again. The mouse was unconscious, with blood coming from cuts and bruises Adam had given him. The entire time Adam was beating him the group just watched on like they were waiting for something. With one final punch he dropped the now fully culled faunus on the puddle of his own blood. "He's not dead, but he can be" Adam stated without regret or sympathy. "Where is Sherry?"

"We can bring you to her" one of the robed figures said hastily.

"Good"

-0-

"Honey, I'm home!" Terra said it with the most energy she could muster. She knew that Saphron would see through it instantly but that didn't mean Terra wasn't going to try.

"Terra is that you?" She heard someone whisper as loudly as they could, "I'm in the living room with Adrian. He's sleeping"

Terra tried to place the voice but couldn't. It was hard because it was a whisper, but the fact that an unrecognizable voice just said they had her son in _her_ house. If they thought that Saphron was the only one that could go off on a person, they were dead wrong. Emphasis on dead if they hurt Adrian.

Her maternal instincts kicked in, throwing her exhaustion to the wind. Terra grabbed the first thing she could reach and ran into the living room. She held it out towards the intruder, not giving an inch….

Terra was confused.

"I'm glad your back" Whispered a very...frazzled Yang Xio-Long. He eyes were red and one of them were twitching. There was one ear-plug in her left ear closest to Adrian. Her hair also seemed to be unkempt in areas. "Adrian is a handful. Ruby was more understanding, though I guess she was older when I took care of her….What are you doing with that umbrella?"

Terra looked down to notice the object she grabbed was the bright pink umbrella Saphron bought last year during the rainy season. It had sat at the door left ever since. She put it down before remembering a crucial detail about Yang that her brother-in-law told her about in one of his adventure stories. "Sorry….but why are your eyes red. I thought they only did that when you were mad?"

Adrian shifted and rolled his head closer to Yang's chest. He opened his hand and reached out, grabbing a handful of Yang's hair and pulled it out. Opening his hand, he let the pieces fall down to the floor where it met with several others that were already there. Adrian then rolled back over.

Yang's eye twitch sped up a little before being dialed back. "Let's just say he likes to pull hair" Yang gestured to give Adrian to Terra.

Terra felt some exhaustion come back since her adrenaline had calmed down, but happily took Adrian from Yang. It had been so long since she had seen her little boy. Since the attack really. Hours upon hours of fixing problems with the Atlesian technology and nights spent sleeping at work had kept her from personal attachments. She wanted some mom time.

It was harder than she admitted. Her boy was growing up so fast. She wanted to stay like this for a long while. She didn't know when she would get it again.

Yang sat next to her watching Adrian sleep.

A knock on the door snapped both girls out of their daze. Yang looked at Terra before the knock happened again. Louder. Yang walked to the door and opened it a crack. At some point in their daze it had started raining. A crackling came down outside the door.

"Can I come in?" A familiar feline voice asked Yang with a smile

-0-

The overcast day had not put a damper on the celebration. Not that anyone was celebrating. It was a bearable cold that swept through the Mantle streets as the Atlas military had set a large platform up in the middle of the square. Several citizens had crowded around the stage to see what was going on.

On stage Winter held the spotlight. Team Junior (JNR) Flanked the stage trying to look like they were experienced huntsman.

"-And with the ever-increasing threat Remnent faces we of the Atlas military do grant the Specialist Rank Two title to Specialist Cordovin!" Cordovin in all her minute stature walked in full ceremonial uniform onto the stage. She was smiling as Winter presented her with her Specialist pin. Crodovin was so disappointed when she heard they put the rewards presentation in Mantle instead of Atlas. She was even more upset that Ironwood wasn't presenting it to her personally.

But oh did she revel in the fact that of all people chosen as his replacement was Winter herself. The smugness she worse could not leave her face. She tried to be as thankful as she needed but was defiantly going to get mileage out of this. Who wouldn't?

"Thank you for the honor of-"

Winter cut her off while handing her a paper. "And now as Specialist Cordovin's first act in her power she will dole out punishment!"

What? This wasn't right. It was customary for Cordovin to give a speech and then for there to be a reception with five star cuisine. The best Atlas had to offer. What was Winter trying to pull?

Four men that were tied together by one long rope were brought up to the stage. Winter seemed to be waiting for something. A flash from Winter to the paper she held told Cordovin what was expected.

'READ ALOUD' was prominently put across the top in the generals own handwriting.

"B-By the command of General Ironwood I hereby strip these four men of all their military titles, honors, and the like. They are hereby dishonorably discharged from service in Atlas and an investigation is placed to authenticate the authority they performed under." Cordovin swore she knew these four. A quick glance at first didn't show anything to distinguish them.

"The charges are as followed:

Assault and Battery of a civilian(s)

Sexual Assault

Terroristic threatening

Theft

Dereliction of Duty

Unauthorized use of Deadly Force

As pronounced guilty on all counts by the military court of Atlas"

The groups of people that seemed to have no interest in her awards ceremony were now cheering that the four men were kicked out of the military. Cordovin was right. These four were promoted by her. She remembered them now. They were prime students in Argus that were quickly put up the ladder to to their...disinterest in the handling of filthy faunus. She was sure they were going to the top. Then the faunus would learn their place.

She looked over. Winter was smiling now, both hands held behind her back in a military fashion, staring directly at her. Cordovin was not just frustrated. She was livid. These fools ruined her moment. Winter knew. She had to have known these people were promoted by her, that's why this was happening. If she knew, then Ironwood knew. That was not good.

Cordovin kept her look on her face of a dignified soldier. Why wouldn't she. She could not look weak in front of her rival. If you looked close though, you could tell something was wrong with her. She was far too pale, even for her own marble skin. She was shaking even in her stuffy military garb.

That paper said there was going to be further investigations. If they already knew who promoted them, it was only a matter of time.

She was in Atlas for celebration.

She was on thin ice.

-0-

 **A/N: Things are ramping up, mostly for Adam.**

 **The 'Men' that helped with Blake and Yang have been compromised! I am sure that they will change their ways given all they will certainly go through.**

 **Adam, don't you know! Never take it out on the messenger!**


End file.
